-•* 


.\ 


7 // 


II  I  S  T  O  R  Y 


Htgtmrnt  of  II  $.  mti»  H.  H. 


FROM   ITS   ORGANIZATION   AT   CAMP  CURTIN, 

HARRISBURG,  PA.,    IN   1861,   TO   ITS   BEING   MUSTERED   OUT   OF 

THE  UNITED  STATES   SERVICE   AT  ALEXANDRIA,  VA., 

JULY  27th,  1865. 


BY  THOMAS   H.  PARKER, 

Late  Captain  Co.  I,  51st  P.  V.  V. 


PHILADELPHIA  : 

KING    &    BAIRD,    PRINTERS,    No.    607    SANSOM    STREET. 
1869. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1869,  by 
THOMAS  H.  PARKER, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court,  in  and  for  the  Eastern  District 
of  Pennsylvania. 


OFFICERS    AND     MEN 

OF   THE 

51sT  REGIMENT,  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS, 

AND 

51sT  REG.,  PA.  VETERAN  VOLUNTEERS, 

WHOSE     DEEDS     OF     DARING     ARE     AS     ENDURING     AS     THE     ROCK     OF     AGES. 

AND    TO    THE    MEMORY    OF    OUR     SACRED     DEAD, 

WHO    SEALED    THEIR    DEVOTION    TO    OUR    F1AG    AND    COUNTRY, 
BY    SACRIFICING    THEIR    PRECIOUS     LIVES 

AN     OFFERING   ON    THE 
ALTAR    OF     THEIR      COUNTRY. 

THIS    BOOK    IS    OFFERED    AS    A    SINCERE    TRIBUTE    TO    ACKNOWLEDGED 
BRAVERY    AND    GALLANTRY, 

BY  THE  AUTHOR. 


M184013 


PREFACE. 


IN  offering  this  book  to  the  public,  it  is  hoped 
the  patient  reader  will  forbear  severe  critieism,  and 
deal  with  the  author  as  gently  as  possible ;  rather 
looking  to  the  merit  of  the  subject  than  to  the  uncul 
tivated  brain  that  put  the  work  together.  The 
merit  of  this  work  lies  principally  in  the  heroic 
struggle  of  the  regiment,  in  the  forty-seven  months 
of  service,  in  lending  its  aid  to  the  suppression  of 
the  late  unholy  rebellion.  Its  hard  marches — its 
untold  sufferings  from  hunger,  thirst  and  cold — its 
desperate  and  stubbornly  fought  battles — its  patient 
endurance,  fortitude  and  courage,  have  never  yet 
been  fully  told ;  and  although  attempted  by  the 
author  in  this  work,  he  is  candid  enough  to  acknowl 
edge  that  it  is  too  feebly  portrayed  to  give  the 
casual  reader  an  idea  of  its  full  extent.  Some  may 
say  that  a  few  of  the  officers  are  overrated  in  per 
sonal  bravery,  and  in  their  magnanimity  towards 
the  rank  and  file  under  their  command,  but  that 
would  dispel  itself  if  the  reader  was  personally 
acquainted  with  those  brave  and  generous  hearts ; 
for  it  is  an  undeniable  fact,  that  a  truly  brave  man 


VI  PREFACE. 

is   a    gentle,    kind-hearted    one,    and    through    his 
bravery  he  can  afford  to  be  sympathetic. 

The  incidents  mentioned  in  this  work  are  not  from 
hearsay,  but  are  wholly  from  the  personal 'obser 
vation  of  the  author,  who  was  on  the  spot  and  saw 
and  heard  for  himself,  and  prides  himself  in  saying 
they  are  literally  true  to  the  letter.  I  have  not  un 
dertaken  to  narrate  a  circumstance  from  the  stand 
point  of  view  of  others,  and  my  descriptions  are 
wholly  from  my  own  optical  view  of  the  "  Elephant" 
as  seen  by  myself.  Others  may  differ  in  their  views 
and  descriptions  of  battles,  etc.,  yet  my  own  will, 
nevertheless,  remain  as  correct  as  theirs.  I  was  a 
close  observer,  and  not  a  night  did  I  lay  down, 
either  under  the  dark  canopy  of  heaven,  or  under 
my  "little  shelter,"  but  I  noted  down  rny  jottings 
of  that  day's  work  before  I  attempted  sleep. 

But  one  thing  only  in  the  compilation  of  this  work 
have  I  a  sincere  regret  for,  and  that  is  the  deficient 
list  of  the  wounded.  It  is  a  well  known  fact  amono- 

O 

all  military  men  engaged  in  the  late  rebellion,  that 
only  the  severely  wounded  were  accounted  for  on 
the  muster  and  pay  rolls  of  the  respective  com 
panies,  for  all  the  slightly  wounded  would  answer 
to  their  names  on  muster-day,  and -by  their  pres 
ence,  their  wounds  would  seldom,  if  ever,  be  an 
event  of  record. 

There  will  be  found  a  few  digressions  from  the 
leading  subject,  but  the  attending  circumstances 


PREFACE.  Vli 

called  them  forth,  and  they  may  not  be  quite  as 
palatable  to  certain  persons  as  might  be  desirable, 
yet  I  can  conscientiously  aver  that  to  wound  the 
feelings  of  any  one,  be  their  political  creeds  what 
they  may,  has  been  the  most  foreign  to  my  wish, 
and  if  any  should  take  umbrage  at  what  is  there 
said,  I  beg  them  to  attribute  it  to  "  an  error  of  the 
head  and  not  of  the  heart." 

T.  H.  P. 
CHESTER  Co.,  March  1,  1869. 


1* 


CONTENTS. 


PAET    I. -1801 


CHAPTER    I. 

Organization  of  the  Fifty-first   Regiment— Recruiting   of 
Companies— Roster  of  Field  and  Staff— Mustered  In...         9 


CHAPTER    II. 

Arming  the  Fifty-first— Capt.  Tarbutton— Amusements 
in  Camp— Band  organized— Presentation  of  the  State 
Colors— Address  by  Governor  Curtiii— Breaking  Camp.  18 


CHAPTER    III. 

From  Camp  Curtin  to  Baltimore  and  Annapolis— Com 
panies  Lettered— Reviews— False  Alarm— The  "New 
Overeoat  "—Preparation  to  go  on  the  Fleet— Serenade..  21 


CONTENTS. 


II. -1862. 


CHAPTEE  I. 

The  New  Year  of  1862— A  rough  night— Company  drills- 
Liquor  smuggling — Paid  off— Going  aboard  the  Fleet...     41 


CHAPTER    II. 

Leaving  Camp  Union — The  Cossack  and  Scout — Burnside 
Expedition  leaves  Annapolis — The  reception  at  Fortress 
Monroe — The  Rip-raps — The  first  shot  heard — Enthu 
siasm  of  the  troops — Again  on  the  ocean — Storm  at  sea 
— ITatteras  Inlet — Narrow  escape  of  the  Scout — Wreck 
of  the  "City  of  New  York" 43 


CHAPTEE   III. 

Capt.  Bennett — More  storms  and  wrecks — The  Cossack 
in  danger — Loss  of  the  Louisiana — Veiling  of  lights — 
Scarcity  of  water  and  rations — Using  vinegar — Heroism 
of  the  Sailors  in  procuring  water — Gratitude  of  the 
Soldiers  to  the  Tars — Preparations  for  landing — Un 
loading  horses 54 


CHAPTEE   IY. 

Over  the  bar — Rumors  of  compromise — Rebel  gunboats — 
Advance  of  the  Fleet  to  Roanoke  Island — Demand  for 
Surrender — Its  rejection— Preparations  for  the  Attack...  G5 


CONTENTS.  XI 


CHAPTER   Y. 

Bombardment  by  the  Fleet — Landing  of  the  Troops — 
Battle  of  Roanoke  Island— The  Victory— Death  of  O. 
Jennings  Wise— Character  of  the  Prisoners—"  Going  into 
Business" — The  Spy — Garbled  newspaper  reports — 
Good  news  from  all  points — Speech  by  General  Reno. ...  72 


CHAPTER    VI. 

All  aboard— The  new  Enfields— Sailing  of  the  Fleet- 
Landing  at  Slocum's  creek — March  to  Newbern— Battle 
ofNewbern — A  patriot's  death — Lieut.  Morris — Charge 
of  the  51st — Capture  of  the  rebel  works — Poisoned  food — 
The  51st  on  a  scout — Bridge-burning  and  foraging — 
Return  to  Camp 03 


CHAPTER    VII. 

Arrival  of  convalescents  and  fresh  troops — Camp  Franklin 
— Proficiency  of  Company  B — Losses  by  sickness  and 
battle — Grumblings — Congratulatory  orders — Gen.  Mc- 
Clellan...  120 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

Drilling  by  the  bugle— Maj.  Schall  in  command — On  board 
the  Admiral — Landing  near  Elizabeth  City — Cnrrituck 
Courthouse — March  into  the  interior — Greetings  to  the 
flag — Fight  at  Camden — Repulse  of  Hawkin's  Zouaves — 
Successful  charge  of  the  51st — Retreat  of  the  enemy — 
Sudden  return  march  to  the  ship— Liberation  of  convicts 
— List  of  casualties 133 


XIV  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTEJR     XVII. 

The  rebels  retreating — Opening  of  the  battle  of  Antietam — 
The  struggle  at  the  bridge — Brilliant  charge  of  the  two 
olsts — Bravery  of  Capt.  Allebaugh — The  bridge  stormed 
and  taken — Flight  of  the  enemy — Heavy  losses  in  the  regi 
ment—Death  of  Lieut,  Col.  Bell— The  battle  renewed— 
Victory — Retreat  of  the  rebels  southward — Promotion — 
Ferrero's  promise  to  the  "  Boys" 229 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

New  stand  of  colors — Review"  by  President  Lincoln — 
Stringent  orders— Pleasant  Valley  —  Complimentary 
orders — Shelter  tents — On  the  move  again — Lovettsville 
— Lost  in  a  snow-storm — Humanity  of  Dr.  Cutter — 
Amosville — "  Buying  mutton  " — White  Sulphur  Springs 
— On  the  Rappahannock — Artillery  duel 244 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

Falmouth — Picketing  the  Rappahannock — "Rally  on  the 
sutler" — Fredericksburg — Demand  for  surrender  by  Gen. 
Burnside — Secret  dealings  with  the  enemy — Preparing 
to  cross  the  river — "Withdrawal  of  the  pickets — Opening 
of  the  Battle  of  Fredericksburg 250 


CHAPTER    XX. 

Awful  cannonade — Crossing  the  pontoon — Forward  move 
ment  to  position — Destructive  fire  of  the  enemy — Heavy 
losses — Death  of  Capt.  Bell — Both  armies  closely  engaged 
Out  of  ammunition — Second  day — Picket  fighting — 
Worthless  shells — Retreat  of  the  army  across  the  river — 
Burying  the  dead — The  killed  and  wounded 267 


CONTENTS. 


PART    III. -1863. 


CHAPTER   I. 

The  Emancipation  proclamation  —  Winter — ' '  Guarding ' ' 
a  sutler's  wagons  —  An  investigation  —  Another  sutler 
cleaned  out — Good  things  from  home — Suicide  of  Serg. 
Jones — Burnside  again  on  the  move — The  army  stuck  in 
the  mud — Return  to  quarters — End  of  the  campaign — 
.Burnside's  corps  ordered  West — Columbus,  Ohio — Con 
flict  with  provost  guards — Loss  of  life 282 

CHAPTER   II. 

Cincinnati — Generous  reception — Paris,  Ky.— Mt.  Ster 
ling —  Winchester  —  Ilickman's  Bridge  —  Lancaster  — 
Negro  life  and  peculiarities — Crab  Orchard — Stanford — 
Correspondence 294 

CHAPTER    III. 

Off  for  Vick'sburg — The  8th  Tennessee — Lexington — Cov- 
ington — Cairo,  Illinois — Big  catfish — On  the  Missis 
sippi — Correspondence  from  the  regiment — Sherman's 
Landing  —  Mortar  tiring  —  Letters  to  the  "National 
Defender'1'1 — Description  of  the  operations  in  the  rear  of 
Vickslmrg 814 

CHAPTER    IV. 

Leaving  Milldale — McCalPs— News  of  surrender  of  Vicks- 
burg — Movement  toward  the  Big  Black — Sherman  in 
command — Destruction  on  the  march — Tyranny  of  Col. 
Le  Gen dre — Crossing  the  Big  Black — Bad  water — 
Awful  storm — Correspondence — The  march  to  Jackson 
— Continuous  fighting— Daring  of  Bob  Roberts — Retreat 
of  the  rebels— Race  for  the  Capitol — Triumphant  entry 
of  the  51st. ..  ..  338 


XVI  CONTENT:?. 


CHAPTEE    V. 

Sacking  of  Jackson — Frolicsome  march  to  the  fort — 
Grotesque  costumes  and  rich  scenes— Severe  marching 
— A  land  of  plenty — Rest — Foraging  in  the  cornfields — 
Arrival  at  the  Big  Black — Heavy  storm — Mud-marching 
— Milldale  again  —  Complimentary  order  from  Gen. 
Grant — Correspondence — Resignation  of  Chaplain  Mai- 
lory 363 

CHAPTEE    VI. 

Haines1  BluiTs — On  the  Yazoo — Scenes  on  the  Father  of 
Rivers — Heaving  the  lead — Wooding  up — Island  No. 
Ten— Cairo,  111.— Off  for  Ohio— Railroad  accident  and 
loss  of  life — Cincinnati — Speech  from  Gen.  Burnside — 
Covington,  K}'. — Nicholasville —  Camp  Parke — Crab 
Orchard — Garrison  duty — Ordered  to  Knoxville,  Tenn. 
— The  performing  Zouave 378 

CHAPTEE    VII. 

Mt.  Vernon — Starting  for  Knoxville,  Tennessee — Corres 
pondence — History  of  a  Dog — Newspaper  extracts — 
London — Racing  on  the  march — Its  results — Post  Pitman 
—  Laurel  Bridge  —  Barboursville — Knobs  of  the  Log 
Mountains  —  Horace  Maynard — Parson  Brownlow — 
Crossing  the  Cumberland  Mountains — Cumberland  Gap 
— Descent  into  Tennessee — Tazewell ..  394 


CHAPTEE   VIII. 

An  infuriated  she-rebel — Clinch  river — Maynardsville  — 
A  loyal  farmer— Return  of  Major  Bolton— Arrival  at 
Knoxville — Misfortunes  of  a  Glee-club — Correspondence 
— Loudon — Retreat  across  the  river — Grand  leap  of  a 
locomotive— Taking  up  the  pontoons— Flank  movement 
of  Gen.  Longstreet — March  to  Lenoir  Station — Leiper's 
Ferry — A  brave  corporal — Letters  to  the"  Defender 415 


CONTENTS.  XVll 


CHAP  TEE    IX. 

Foraging — Address  from  Ladies'  Loyal  League  at  Norris- 
town,  Pa. — Reply  by  Major  Bolton — Building  pontoons 
— Laying  the  bridge  —  Re-enlistment  proposed — News 
paper  extracts  and  correspondence — Description  of  the 
Winter  campaign — Character  and  efficiency  of  the  Union 
and  Rebel  armies  contrasted — Material  composing  the 
9th  Army  Corps  and  the  23d  Army  Corps — Return  of 
officers  from  home 438 

CHAPTER   X. 

Destruction  of  the  pontoon  bridge — Approach  of  the 
enemy — A  retreat  ordered — General  confusion — Burn- 
side  arrives  on  the  field — Change  of  programme — 
Advance  to  London — Fighting  and  falling  back — 
Skilful  manoauvring — Severe  marching  and  suffering — 
Campbell's  station — Magnificent  battle  scene — Repulse 
of  Longstreet — Night  march  to  Knoxville — Losses  in  the 
regiment 473 

CHAPTER  XI. 

The  51st  entrenched — Building  and  breaking  of  the 
dam — Skill  and  daring  of  Sergeants  Parker  and  Fair — 
Picket  fighting  and  house  burning — Grand  and  awful 
scenes  of  fire  and  battle — Sufferings  of  the  men — Rumors 
of  relief— An  assault  by  the  rebels — Retaking  of  the 
picket  pits  by  Schall's  brigade — Constant  fighting  and 
conflagration  , 486 

CHAPTER    XII. 

News  from  General  Sherman — Night  attack  on  the  left — 
Fort  Sanders — The  network  of  wires — Desperate  charge 
of  the  rebels — The  struggle  on  the  parapet — Repulse  of 
the  enemy — Disparity  of  losses — Raising  of  the  siege — 
Retreat  of  Longstreet — Rutledge — Blain's  Cross-roads — 
Another  battle^—Re-enlistinent  commenced — Close  of  the 
campaign  of  1863 409 


XV111  CONTENTS. 


PART    I V.-  18  64 


CHAPTER   I. 

First  muster  of  veterans-— The  veteran  roll  of  honor — A 
thirty  days1  furlough — Green-hide  moccasins — Starting 
for  home— The  march  northward — Arrival  at  Camp 
Nelson,  Ky. — New  clothing — Cincinnati — Preparations 
at  home  for  reception  and  welcome — Proclamation  of 
Gov.  Curtin — Arrival  at  Harrisburg — The  welcome 
home — Affecting  scenes 510 


CHAPTER    II. 

Reorganization  of  the  51st — Leaving  home — Harrisburg 
again — ''Taking  a  French"  —Deaths  on  furlough  — 
Arrival  at  Baltimore — Annapolis— Camp  Parole — Letter 
from  Lieut. -Col.  Schall — Camp  Bell — Correspondence 
— Recruiting  detail — Visit  from  Generals  Burnside  and 
Grant — Preparing  to  go  to  the  front 531 


CHAPTER    III. 

Across  the  Potomac— On  the  Rapidan — Battle  of  the 
Wilderness — The  woods  on  fire  —  Chancellorsville — 
Battle  of  Spottsylvania — Charge  and  repulse  of  the  3d 
Division — Terrible  losses  in  the  51st — Bravery  of  Capt. 
Bisbing — Capture  of  Capt.  Allebaugh  and  the  colors — 
Promotion  of  Genl.  Hartranft — Another  day  of  carnage 
—Truce  of  the  pickets — Retreat  of  the  enemy — Nearing 
Richmond— Battle  of  Cold  Harbor— Death  of  Col.  Schall 
and  Lieut.  Fizone 512 


CONTENTS.  XIX 


CHAPTER   IV. 

Progress  of  the  advance — Crossing  the  James — Affair  with 
the  Home  Guards — A  bloody  charge — Severe  losses  in 
the  51st — In  the  rifle  pits — Another  desperate  rush — 
The  railroad  eut — Daring  and  persistent  courage  of  the 
troops — Frequent  repulses  of  the  enemy — Close  and 
continuous  fighting — Efforts  to  connect  the  lines — 
Failures — The  51st  detailed  to  do  the  work — A  grand 
success ..  502 


CHAPTER   V. 

A  memorable  shell — Diversion  by  Gen.  Lee — Heavy 
assault  all  along  the  lines — Repulse  of  the  rebels — 
Narrow  escape  of  Gen.  Hartranft — Preparations  for  a 
grand  assault — Burnside's  mine — Firing  of  the  train 
— Awful  explosion  and  loss  of  life — Charge  of  the 
colored  troops — Failure  of  the  supports  to  come  up — 
Meade's  jealousy  of  Burnside — An  important  statement 
— The  reserve  sent  to  the  rear  by  Mead,  during  the 
charge — Repulse  of  our  troops  and  heavy  losses — Death 
of  Lieut.  Fillman— Buttle  of  Yellow  Tavern... 


CHAPTER   VI. 

Renewal  of  the  battle — Splendid  Union  victory — Ream's 
station — Return  to  Yellow  Tavern — Fort  building — 
Rebel  assault  repulsed — Grant's  railroad — Capture  of 
rebel  pickets — Politics  in  camp — Fight  among  the  officers 
— "Smoked  Yankees" — Election  in  the  field — Dis 
ciplining — Sheridan's  victory — Thanksgiving  turkeys — 
Fort  Morton — A  hot  place — A  model  fort-builder — 
u  Bob's"  bogus  dinner 581 


XX  CONTENTS. 


PART    V.-1SG5, 


CHAPTER  I. 

Shelling  Fort  Morton— Rebel  flag  of  truce— The  Peace 
Commissioners — Conference  on  the  picket  line — Recep 
tion  of  the  rebel  magnates  by  Genl.  Grant — Complimen 
tary  enthusiasm  on  all  sides — Failure  of  the  mission— 
Shelling  renewed — Narrow  escape  of  Capt.  Parker — 
Movement  to  the  left — Capture  and  re-capture  of  Fort 
Steadman — Tom  Troy's  visit  to  Petersburg — Capture  of 
the  city — Last  march  southward — End  of  the  war — 
Resignation  of  Gen.  Burnside — Last  orJer  of  Col. 
Bolton — Return  home  of  the  regiment — Final  farewell.  GOO 


CHAPTER   II. 

Roster  of  Field  and  Staff  Officers— Roll  of  Co.  A— Roll  of 
Co.  B— Roll  of  Co.  C— Roll  of  Co.  D— Roll  of  Co.  E— 
Roll  of  Co.  F— Roll  of  Co.  G— Roll  of  Co.  H— Roll  of 
Co.  I— Roll  of  Co.  K— Roll  of  names  unassigned— State 
ment — Casualties — List  of  battles  engaged  in — Distance 
travelled.  .  C22 


CHAPTER    III. 

Review  of  the  services  of  the  51st— Defence  of  the  regi 
ment  by  Colonels  Bolton  and  McClellan — Glorious  his 
tory  of  the  Ninth  Army  Corps — Sketches  of  the  field 
and  staff— Villains  denounced — Stanzas  in  honor  of  the 
dead  heroes — Their  widows  and  orphans — Thanks — 
List  of  Cemeteries— U.  S.  price  list C92 


PART    I.- 1861. 


CHAPTEE    I. 

Organization  of  the  Fifty-first  Regiment — Recruiting  of  Com 
panies — Roster  of  Field  and  Staff— Mustered  In. 

IN  writing  the  history  of  any  organization — no 
matter  how  important  or  insignificant  it  may  be — it 
is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  it  will  be  fraught  with 
some  few  incidents  of  sufficient  interest  to  remuner 
ate  the  reader,  who  follows  the  historic  pen  through 
the  revelations  it  makes  of  the  narrative  it  has  dis 
closed.  What  can  furnish  a  more  interesting  narra 
tive  than  a  military  organization  that  has.  nobly 
battled  with  a  traitor  enemy  for  nearly  four  weary, 
toilsome  years  ? 

The  subject  of  this  history  is  one  of  peculiar  in 
terest,  and  calls  for  a  more  fertile  brain  than  is  pos 
sessed  by  the  author  to  do  full  justice  to  such  an 
illustrious  subject  as  the  51st  Kegiment  Pennsyl 
vania  Volunteers  and  Pennsylvania  Veteran  Volun 
teers  furnishes,  the  career  of  which  is  one  that  may 
justly  be  envied  by  regiments  of  a  less  brilliant 
record,  although  they  have  all  faithfully  fulfilled 
the  mission  assigned  them,  by  standing  up  boldly, 
aye,  nobly,  against  the  assaults  of  an  unprincipled 
enemy,  whose  every  effort  was  to  destroy  the 
greatest  Republic  entrusted  to  the  care  of  him  who 
had  so  nobly  and  zealously  guarded  its  future 


10       HISTORY   OF  THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

interest  at  the  sacrifice  of  his  own  eventful  life — 
our  martyred  Lincoln  ! 

The  writer  of  this,  though  not  gifted  with  the  pen 
eloquence  of  an  Everett  or  a  Bancroft,  yet  has  been 
a  participant  in  all  the  scenes  through  which  this 
noble  regiment  has  passed,  from  Roanoke  Island  to 
the  surrender  of  the  rebel  chieftains — Lee  and  John 
ston,  and  "  will  a  round  unvarnished  tale  deliver  of 
its  whole  course"  of  trials  and  dangers.  And 
though  it  may  have  defects  in  its  execution,  it  shall 
be  told  in  a  fair  and  impartial  manner,  with  a  strict 
regard  for  truth  and  simplicity,  in  the  hope  that  all 
defects,  wherever  they  exist,  will  be  gently  passed 
over  by  the  forbearing  reader,  and  fairly  and 
honestly  attributed  to  "an  error  of  the  head  and 
not  of  the  heart." 

The  many  sufferings  which  this  heroic  band  of 
"companions  in  arms"  endured  have  remained  un 
told  from  these  simple  facts :  that  its  career  was  one 
of  continual  privations  from  its  origin  up  to  its  final 
dissolution,  and  that  its  members  naturally  looked 
upon  all  of  their  toils  as  a  matter  of  necessity,  and 
therefore  thought  it  needless  to  complain.  Other 
regiments  have  suffered  terribly  from  famine,  thirst, 
long,  wearisome  marches,  diseases,  and  the  various 
engines  of  death  incident  to  the  battle-field,  but  they 
have  experienced  respites  from  such  for  weeks  at  a 
time ;  but  very  seldom  so  with  the  51st — its  fate  was 
to  be  "  up  and  at  them"  all  the  time  ;  it  was  innocent 
of  "  winter  quarters,"  though  it  had  partly  prepared 
them  on  two  occasions,  yet  failed  to  remain  long 
enough  to  complete  them. 

I  wish  not  to  enter  the  arena  to  gain  historical 
notoriety,  but  simply  to  record  the  events  of  a  gal- 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  11 

lant  body  of  men — bold,  daring  men — such  as  but 
few  armies  in  the  ancient  or  modern  wars  possessed. 
The  call  for  troops  to  defend  the  nation's  Capitol 
is  too  fresh  in  the  memory  of  all  to  need  a  repetition 
here,  as  is  the  cause  which  gave  necessity  for  the 
President's  proclamation  to  be  issued,  as  also  the 
noble  responses  to  it  by  thousands  of  heroic  spirits 
throughout  the  land ;  so  that  the  entire  world  looked 
upon  the  rising  army  with  awe  and  admiration,  to 
behold  one  of  such  immense  magnitude  raised  as 
if  by  a  magician's  wand ! 

The  51st  Regiment  of  Pennsylvania   Volunteer 
Infantry  was  organized  at  Carnp  Curtin,  Harrisburg, 
Pa.,  late  in   September,   1861,    under  the   sole  and 
personal  supervision  of  Col.  John  F.  Hartranft,  its 
first  commander.      The  companies  composing   the 
regiment  began  to  report  (unassigned)  at  Camp  Cur- 
tin  early  in  September,  for  equipment  and  drill,  of 
which    Capt.  Wm.   J.    Bolton's    company   was   the 
first   in   camp,  having   arrived   on   the    10th   inst., 
and  was  equipped  and   mustered    into  the    service 
of  the   State    on  the  llth,  and  mustered    into   the 
United  States  army  on  the  12th.     Five  companies, 
principally  recruited  in   Montgomery  county,  com 
posed  the  right  wing  of  the  regiment.     The  other 
five  companies,  composing  the  left  wing,  were  re 
cruited  in  the  interior  counties  of  the  State — Centre, 
Dauphin,  Snyder,  Clearfield,  and   Northumberland 
being  well  represented.     The  work  of  organization 
was  a  task  not  without  its  perplexities.     A  large 
number  of  both  officers  and    men  had  seen  service 
in  the  "three  months"  call,  and  naturally  wished  a 
position  commensurate  with  their  experience  in  the 
field ;  but  some  were  doomed  to  disappointment.   In 


12        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

order,  however,  that  their  claims  should  be  fairly 
dealt  with,  compromises  were  resorted  to  which  gave 
entire  satisfaction  to  the  interested  ones,  and  accom 
plished  the  desired  organization.  The  "  lettering  " 
of  the  companies  was  not  attained  until  the  organi 
zation,  and  each  therefore  was  only  known  as  Capt. 

's  company  till  that  lettering  was  completed. 

As  the  various  companies  of  recruits  entered  Camp 
Curtin,  they  were  immediately  put  under  proper 
drill-masters,  to  receive  that  training  and  discipline 
that  was  so  necessary  to  fit  them  for  the  ordeals  to 
which  they  were  subjected  on  many  a  bloody  field 
through  which  they  passed  with  so  much  credit  to 
themselves  and  the  cause  they  defended.  Some 
companies  entered  camp  with  their  full  complement 
of  men,  and  others  nearly  so ;  but  after  a  few  days' 
wallowing  in  the  mud,  the  men  became  dissatisfied 
and  commenced  that  unsoldierly  act,  deserting. 
Capt.  George  K.  Pechin  took  into  camp  from  Mont 
gomery  county  eighty-one  men,  on  the  16th  day  of 
September.  The  second  night  after  their  arrival  the 
rain  poured  down  in  torrents,  and  his  men  were 
forced  to  leave  their  tents  to  avoid  being  submerged 
by  the  "  sea  of  rushing  waters"  that  had  found  its  way 
into  the  tents.  The  storm  subsiding  early  in  the 
forenoon  of  the  next  day,  groups,  each  of  a  half 
dozen  of  the  unfortunate  "drowned  outs,"  were  to 
be  seen  standing  in  the  company  streets  discussing 
the  necessity  of  "going  a  soldiering"  in  that  kind 
of  a  way.  However,  the  matter  was  well  talked 
over  and  conclusions  arrived  at,  which  developed 
themselves  the  next  morning  at  roll-call,  when  fifty- 
four  names  out  of  the  eighty-one  were  all  that  were 
answered.  Other  companies  suffered  by  this  first 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       13 

storm  in  camp,  but  not  so  much  as  Capt.  Pechin's, 
which  presented  the  appearance,  at  one  time,  of  the 
total  extinction  of  a  much  longer  existence  of  the 
company  from  Upper  Merion.  Desertions  were 
alarmingly  frequent,  not  caused  by  any  inefficiency 
of,  or  dislike  to,  the  officers,  for  all  had  their  choice 
of  officers  when  they  enlisted,  but  wholly  from  the 
nature  of  the  ground  on  which  they  were  encamped, 
it  being  very  low  and  much  depressed  below  the 
surrounding  tract,  so  that  during  a  storm,  which 
occurred  almost  daily  the  first  three  weeks,  the 
superfluous  water  would  seek  its  level  in  and  around 
the  tents,  causing  great  dissatisfaction  to  the  men 
and  making  them  execrate  soldiering  and  every 
thing  belonging  to  it.  Recruits  were  joining  daily; 
but  if  two  were  added  in  day  time,  two  would  desert 
at  night.  Such,  in  fact,  was  the  case  with  the 
company  from  Upper  Merion,  until  it  became  a 
serious  question  whether  the  company  could  be  or 
ganized  in  time  to  take  its  departure  with  the  regi 
ment  for  Annapolis,  Md. 

Another  company,  under  the  command  of  Capt. 
Finley,  was  very  unsuccessful  in  retaining  its  in 
dividuality,  from  the  cause  of  recruits  not  coming  in 
as  fast  as  the  urgency  of  the  case  demanded.  This 
company  complained  of  unfair  treatment  by  the 
"  powers  that  be."  Capt.  Finley  and  Lieut.  George 
Schall  made  a  proposition  to  the  company  that,  as 
they  were  unable  to  organize,  if  they  wished  to  re 
turn  to  their  homes,  they  were  free  to  do  so.  None, 
however,  went  home.  The  men  feeling  great  respect 
and  evincing  much  love  for  the  two  officers,  wanted 
to  go  to  the  "front"  with  them,  should  they  decide 
to  go  there,  by  endeavoring  to  recruit  the  company 


14        HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

for  another  regiment.  Capt.  Fin  ley  declined  taking 
his  company  into  another  regiment,  and  the  day 
of  departure  of  the  51st  coming  too  early  to  save 
them  from  disbandment,  Lieut.  Schall  entered  Capt. 
Pechin's  company  with  about  thirty-four  of  Finley's 
men,  the  remainder  being  transferred  by  Capt. 
Finley  to  a  couple  of  other  companies.  The  captain 
went  home  to  civil  life,  carrying  the  respect  and  love 
of  all  who  knew  him.  By  this  timely  aid  of  the  dis 
banded  company,  Capt.  Pechin  was  placed  in  a  posi 
tion  to  enable  him  to  get  mustered  into  the  United 
States  service,  on  the  28th  of  November,  1861. 

After  the  regiment  was  organized,  the  status  of 
the  field  and  staff  officers  became  as  follows  :  Colonel, 
John  F.  Hartranft;  Lieut.-Colonel,  Thomas  S.  Bell; 
Major,  Edwin  Schall ;  Quartermaster,  John  J.  Freed- 
ley  ;  Surgeon,  John  P.  Hosack  ;  Asst.  Surgeon,  James 
D.  Noble;  Adjutant,  Daniel  P.  Bible;  Chaplain,  D. 
Gr.  Mallory. 

A  few  remarks  here  of  the  personal  qualifications 
of  the  field  and  staff  officers,  in  a  military  point  of 
view,  may  not  be  amiss  Col.  John  F.  Hartranft  is 
by  nature  a  military  man.  Quick  of  perception, 
prompt  to  obey,  and  fearless  to  execute,  his  ability 
is  beyond  cavil.  This  assertion  he  has  proven  on 
numberless  battle-fields — in  places  where  slowness 
to  perceive  his  critical  situation  would  havq.entailed 
upon  him  and  his  command  total  defeat  and  eternal 
disgrace,  (vide  his  Fort  Stead  man  affair.)  With  a 
keen  sense  to  unravel  an  apparently  meaningless 
manoeuvre  of  the  enemy  during  an  engagement,  he 
would  be  able  to  have  his  command  posted  where  it 
was  bound  to  thwart  the  opposing  chief  of  his  cher 
ished  object.  His  promptness  to  obey  has  been 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       15 

often  discussed  by  those  under  bis  command.  Orders 
from  a  superiorwere  always  obeyed  with  that  prompt 
itude  and  alacrity  that  distinguishes  the  true  sol 
dier  from  the  parlor  soldier.  It  mattered  not  how 
exacting  were  those  orders ;  while  others  failed  to 
enforce  them,  "old  Johnny,"  as  his  boys  were  wont 
to  call  him,  would  successfully  carry  them  out.  His 
fearlessness -to  execute  was  the  result  of  his  indom- 
nitable  courage  and  his  total  disregard  of  any  and 
every  danger.  Who  is  there  in  or  out  of  the  army 
that  can  say  they  ever  saw  Col.  Hartranft  dis 
turbed  in  mind,  or  uncollected  in  ideas,  when  in  the 
heat  of  battle  ?  His  coolness  and  bravery  under  the 
most  appalling  circumstances  have  called  forth  en 
comiums  that  the  great  chieftain,  Gen.  Grant,  would 
be* proud  of. 

Lieut-Col.  Thomas  S.  Bell  was  all  that  his  pre 
decessor  is ;  but  if  any  difference  existed,  it  was  only 
in  being  a  more  strict  disciplinarian. 

Maj.  Edwin  Schall  is  deserving  of  a  more  elabor 
ate  biographical  remark  than  can  be  here  given,  as 
this  is  not  intended  for  an  analysis  of  a  man's  char 
acter,  but  suffice  it  to  say,  that  he  was  all  that  com 
posed  a  true  soldier  and  a  gentleman  ;  kind,  affable, 
generous  to  a  fault,  but  resolute  and  firm  in  all  his 
commands,  rather  inclined  to  control  by  suasive 
means  t^an  by  the  iron  hand,  which  military  au 
thority  too  often  uses.  His  plan  was  not  to  punish 
a  man  for  an  imaginary  wrong,  but  to  reason  and 
investigate,  by  which  mode  he  not  only  saved  him 
self  anxiety,  but  retained  the  love  and  respect  of  his 
entire  command.  Who  ever  heard  of  him  having 
an  enemy  ? 

Quartermaster  John  J.  Freedley  was  well  fitted 


16         HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIBST   REGIMENT 

for  his  position,  but  was  looked  upon  by  the  enlisted 
men  as  careless  of  their  interest,  when  in  fact  he 
labored  most  assiduously  for  their  comfort,  both  day 
and  night.  But  what  Quartermaster  ever  received  any 
credit  for  the  performance  of  his  most  arduous  duties? 

Surg.  John  P.  Hosack  was  also  one  of  those  who 
came  in  for  a  share  of  censure  from  the  enlisted 
men.  He  was  undoubtedly  a  skilful  surgeon,  but 
had  very  little  commiseration  for  a  wounded  or  sick 
man,  and  went  through  the  routine  of  surgery  in  too 
much  of  a  business  way  to  please  the  fancy  of  the 
invalid,  who  needed  a  little  sympathy  as  well  as  a 
good  deal  of  quinine. 

Asst.-Surgeon  James  D.  Noble  was  the  idol  of  the 
invalids.  He  was  well  calculated  to  make  a  host  of 
friends  in  any  hospital,  kind  in  expression  of  fellow- 
feeling,  gentle  in  his  administerings,  courteous  and 
affable  to  all  who  sought  his  aid. 

Adjt.  Daniel  P.  Bible  was  a  "  brick  of  the  first 
water,"  making  an  efficient  officer  in  nearly  all  re 
spects.  The  position  of  an  adjutant  is  one  not  to  be 
envied.  He  was  a  severe  disciplinarian,  attentive 
to  business,  and  kept  the  record's  of  the  regiment  in 
a  creditable  state  during  his  stay  with  it,  which  was 
of  short  duration. 

Chaplain  Daniel  Gr.  Mallory  was  a  man  of  no 
mean  ability,  but  constitutionally  unfit  for  the  ex 
posures  of  camp  life.  He  wrought  hard  to  gather 
in  the  stray  sheep  to  his  fold ;  but  his  efforts  were 
fruitless  as  he  eventually  lost  the  stock  on  hand 
with  which  he  began  his  labors. 

The  16th  day  of  September,  1861,  may  be  set  down 
as  the  day  of  the  regiment's  arrival  in  Camp  Curtin, 
although  a  few  companies  came  previous  to,  and 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       17 

after  that  date.     Soon  after  its  arrival,  the  men  be 
gan  to  experience  the  soldier's  troubles — comfortless 
clothing,  and  scanty  rations.     Most  of  the  men  had 
come  to  camp  in  their  shirt  sleeves,  being  led  to  be 
lieve  that  as  soon  as  they  should  arrive  in  camp, 
army  clothing  would  be  issued  to  them  ;  but  nothing 
of  the  kind  came  to  hand  till  the  1st  of  October, 
except  a  lot  of  old  tattered  blankets  and  bed  quilts, 
which  were  issued  on  the  17th  of  September,  but 
not    used    by  the   recruits,  because   after   carrying 
them  to  their  quarters  it  was  discovered  that  they 
were  alive   with  vermin,  having   been  used  in   the 
"three  months'  service."     The  men  in  a  spirit  of  in 
dignation  pitched  the  blankets  into  their  company 
streets,  and  piling  them  in  heaps,  set  them  on  fire, 
committing  the  "  gray-back  veterans  "  to  the  flames. 
They  remained    without   blankets   or    quilts   until 
October   2d,   when  the  ladies — God  bless  them — of 
Dauphin    county    heard    of    their   destitution,    and 
loaned  the  regiment  quilts  sufficient  for  its  comfort 
until  the  government  could  supplv  it,  which  it  did 
on  the  9th  of  October.     The  bed  quilts  were  returned 
to  the  kind  hearted  ladies.     Up  to  the  introduction 
of  the  first  issue  of  blankets,  the  boys  had  not  ex 
perienced  any  "  itching  "    sensation  ;    but  from  the 
blankets,    a   few   of   those    "soldier's    companions" 
had  unfortunately  got  on  the  men's  clothing,  and  in 
a  few  days  they  were  all  enjoying  a  good  scratch. 
The  vermin  increased  with  great  rapidity,  and  each 
soldier  looked  with  strong  suspicion  on  his  neighbor 
as  being  infested  with  the  "nasty  things,"  each  arid 
all  having  their  full  share,  yet  with  much  pertinacity 
denying  the  existence  of  the  insect  on  their  persons; 

still  they  were  there,  which  many  a  sly  twitch  of 

o* 


18        HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIKST   EEGIMENT 

the  arms  or  body  silently  indicated.  It  was  some 
times  highly  amusing  to  go  outside  the  camp  and 
take  a  stroll  through  the  fields  arid  among  the  bushes, 
to  find  the  boys  hid  away,  as  they  supposed,  where 
no  one  could  see  them  hunting  their  clothing  over  to 
rid  themselves  of  the  "  pesky"  creatures. 

On  the  28th  day  of  September,  1861,  nearly  all 
the  companies  were  marched  into  Harrisburg,  and 
mustered  into  the  service  of  the  United  States  by 
Lieut.  W.  Piper,  5th  U.  S.  Artillery. 


CHAPTER   II. 

Arming  the  Fifty-first — Capt.  Tarbutton — Amusements  in 
Camp — Band  organized — Presentation  of  the  State  Colors — 
Address  by  Governor  Curtin — Breaking  Camp. 

THE  51st  was  fully  armed  and  equipped  on  the  2nd 
day  of  October,  with  the  Harper's  Ferry  muskets 
from  the  arsenal  at  Harrisburg.  As  the  men  had 
evinced  a  deep  interest  in  becoming  proficient  in 
the  "  facings,"  it  can  reasonably  be  supposed  they 
would  feel  a  deeper  interest  in  the  "  manual  of 
arms  ;  "  and  as  they  rapidly  acquired  the  handling 
of  the  musket,  they  were  taken  under  the  instruc 
tions  of  Capt.  Tarbutton,  who  was  at  that  time 
regimental  drill-master  of  the  camp.  The  captain 
was  the  right  man  in  the  right  place,  and  had  a  host 
of  friends  among  the  boys  who  were  fortunate 
enough  to  be  in  bis  school;  for  his  gentlemanly, 
urbane  manners,  with  quaint  sayings,  kept  them 
always  in  a  good  humor,  and  they  in  turn  did  their 
best  to  keep  him  in  the  same.  He  was  a  good  dis- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEBES.       19 

ciplinarian,  kind  to  all,  yet  resolute  and  exacting  in 
all  his  commands.  Every  afternoon  be  would  have 
the  regiment  out  for  battalion  drill,  without  arms, 
and  as  the  weather  was  somewhat  cool,  the  boys, 
when  standing  at  a  "  front,"  would  have  their  hands 
in  their  pockets,  art  act  which  the  captain  deemed  un- 
military,  and  he  would  administer  a  gentle  reproof  to 
them.  Then  by  walking  from  the  left  to  the  right- 
wing,  he  would  find  some  one  to  confront  who  had  his 
hands  snugly  esconced  in  his  pockets ;  the  old  cap 
tain,  singling  him  out,  would  gaze  on  him  in  silence 
long  enough  for  the  man  to  get  his  hands  out ;  but 
if  he  failed  to  take  the  hint,  the  captain  in  his  kind, 
but  gruff  way,  would  ask  him,  u  What  are  you  nurs 
ing  ?"  The  flushed  cheek  indicated  what  effect  his 
words  had.  The  men  of  the  various  regiments  who 
were  under  his  tuition  will  remember  him  with 
pleasure  to  their  last  moments.  As  a  proof,  for  in 
stance,  while  on  a  wearisome  march  in  1863,  in  Mis 
sissippi,  the  51st  passed  a  few  Pennsylvania  regi 
ments  who  were  sitting  down  on  the  roadside  for  a 
few  minutes'  rest,  when  it  was  hailed  by  the  usual 
question  in  passing,  "What  regiment,  boys?" 
Keceiving  "51st  Pennsylvania,"  in  reply,  the  ques 
tion  was  asked  simultaneously  by  a  dozen  voices  of 
the  other  regiments,  "Boys,  don't  you  wish  old 
Tarbutton  had  you  to-day  drilling  you?"  Thus, 
often  in  passing  Pennsylvania  regiments,  when  worn 
out  with  hard  marching  or  fighting,  we  would  be 
asked  if  we  not  didn't  wish  "  old  Tarbutton  "  had  us  ? 
In  the  evenings  after  dress  parade,  a  large  number 
of  the  boys  would  congregate  on  the  drill-ground 
for  various  amusements,  such  as  "corner  or  base 
ball,"  wrestling,  running,  jumping,  and  tossing  up 


20        HISTOEY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

each  other  in  blankets.  This  latter  amusement  col 
lected  large  crowds  from  the  numerous  other  regi 
ments  in  Camp  Curtin,  and  at  times  was  highly  ex 
citing  as  well  as  interesting.  An  explanation  of 
this  species  of  amusement,  perhaps,  may  not  be  un 
interesting  to  the  uninitiated.  The  first  thing  in 
order  was  to  obtain  a  woollen  blanket  of  undoubted 
strength,  then  as  many  of  the  boys  as  could  secure 
good  holds  at  each  of  the  four  corners  and  sides  would 
do  so,  when  some  outsider  would  be  kidnapped  and 
thrown  per  force  into  the  blanket,  and  before  the 
involuntary  aeronaut  could  regain  his  feet,  the 
blanket  would  be  in  motion.  Raising  it  up  a  couple 
of  feet  from  the  ground,  each  one  pulling  the  blanket 
towards  himself  would  tighten  it  so  as  to  throw  the 
man  in  it  two  or  three  feet  up  in  the  air,  coming 
down  again  on  the  blanket  only  to  go  up  the  same 
height  the  second  time,  and  in  going  through  the 
operation  the  third  time,  the  boys  would  lend  all 
their  efforts  and  strength  to  send  him  up  as  high  as 
they  possibly  could,  to  the  height  of  fifteen  or  twenty 
feet;  catching  him  again  in  his  descent  only  to  send 
him  up  still  higher  the  next  time,  if  possible,  until 
his  piteous  appeals  would  obtain  his  final  release 
from  his  persecutors,  who  then  would  secure  another 
victim  for  the  blanket.  Thus  was  many  an  hour 
passed  that  might  have  been  worse  spent. 

An  amusing  affair  occurred  just  before  the  regi 
ment  left  Camp  Curtin.  The  rations  were  always 
too  much  of  a  sameness ;  the  boys  longed  for  a 
change,  and  as  their  money  was  all  "  played  out," 
in  order  to  gratify  their  appetite  they  had  to  resort 
to  strategy,  which  in  this  case  was  one  of  consider 
able  risk,  as  well  as  of  profit.  A  party  agreed,  as  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       21 

weather  was  cool,  and  a  cattle  train  with  some  fine 
fat  hogs  on  it  was  standing  on  the  siding  opposite  the 
camp,  that  a  piece  of  fresh  pork  would  eat  tolerably 
well,  providing  it  could  be  got  through  the  guards 
into  camp.  Risky  as  it  was,  the  attempt  was  decided 
upon.  That  night  the  aforesaid  party  went  out  of 
camp  by  breaking  guard  and  proceeded  to  the  cars, 
where  a  fine  hog  weighing  about  two  hundred  and 
fifty  pounds  was  taken  out. 

The  killing  only  occupied  a  few  minutes,  and  its 
squeals  were  soon  hushed  in  death ;  but  the  untried 
task  of  getting  it  into  camp  without  detection,  had 
yet  to  be  tested,  for  the  guards  had  their  instructions 
to  arrest  all  soldiers  who  were  even  suspected  of 
having  been  out  foraging;  and  should  a  guard, 
under  any  circumstance  whatever,  pass  a  soldier, 
or,  in  fact,  any  one,  into  camp,  across  their  beats, 
they  would  be  punished  for  their  indiscretion. 
Pickets  were  also  posted  outside  the  camp  with  in 
structions  to  overhaul  all  soldiers  found  outside 
without  passes.  Thus  a  party  of  a  dozen  men  to 
gether  had  a  small  chance  for  being  successful  in 
the  pork  trade.  As  they  were  Hearing  the  pickets, 
they  were  halted,  and  ordered  to  come  in  and  give 
themselves  up ;  but  the  challenge  only  served  to 
set  their  fertile  brains  to  invent  some  strategy  to 
get  into  carnp  with  their  prize — to  them  it  was  a 
cherished  prize,  however  desperate  the  game  had  now 
to  be  played.  One  was  sent  in  to  the  picket,  and 
told  a  plausible  tale  that  they  were  ''railroad 
hands,"  (it  being  too  dark  for  the  picket  to  see  to  the 
contrary,)  and  that  in  walking  down  the  railroad 
they  had  come  across  a  sick  soldier  belonging  to 
Camp  Curtin,  and  finding  him  unable  to  walk,  they 


22        HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

had  gone  for  a  physician  who  resided  close  by,  who 
told  them  the  man  was  dangerously  ill,  and  they 
must  not  carry  him  all  the  way  round  to  the  en 
trance  gate,  as  it  would  kill  him,  but  they  must 
keep  him  well  wrapped  up,  and  carry  him  on  a 
litter  the  shortest  possible  way  into  camp.  The 
tender  chord  of  sympathy  being  touched,  the  party 
were  permitted  to  pass  inside  the  picket  line  with 
their  charge,  for  which  they  had  made  a  litter,  by 
taking  two  rails  out  of  a  fence,  and  laying  a  blanket 
over  all.  On  reaching  the  line  of  camp -guards,  an 
other  obstacle  arose,  and  the  hog  came  very  near 
being  deserted.  They  had  told  the  guard  the  same 
tale  of  duplicity,  and  were  about  being  permitted  to 
cross  the  beat  just  as  the  officer  of  the  day  was 
making  his  "  grand  round."  Seeing  a  group  of  men 
near  the  line,  he  naturally  inquired  their  business, 
and  actually  insisted  on  investigating  the  matter  be 
fore  him.  but  they  had  the  doctor's  injunctions  to 
not  allow  a  particle  of  air  to  blow  on  the  invalid, 
and  they  would  not  be  responsible  for  the  man's  life 
if  the  officer  would  violate  the  trust  imposed  on 
them  by  the  son  of  Esculapius.  However,  with 
plenty  of  "  brass/'  and  endless  perseverance,  they 
succeeded  in  getting  their  prize  into  camp  at  one 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  after  being  six  hours  accom 
plishing  the  feat. 

Another  incident  worthy  of  note  occurred  the 
evening  before  our  departure  for  Annapolis.  On 
the  afternoon  before  we  left  Camp  Curtin,  the  boys 
found  out  that  the  regiment  was  under  marching 
orders  to  leave  the  next  day,  consequently  they 
were  intent  on  having  a  gay  time  before  they  should 
leave.  About  one-half  of  the  regiment  broke  guard, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       23 

and  went  into  Harrisburg  to  enjoy  themselves. 
Col.  Hartranft,  finding  so  many  of  the  men  absent, 
and  fearful  of  a  disturbance  taking  place  in  town, 
issued  orders  for  a  detail  to  be  made  to  patrol  the 
town,  to  arrest  and  bring  into  camp  all  absentees. 
When  the  details  for  each  company  were  made, 
many  of  the  companies  had  not  the  required  num 
ber  to  send ;  but  all  were  sent  that  were  in  camp. 
However,  the  tables  were,  confusedly  turned,  for 
most  of  the  patrolling  party  got  somewhat  inebriated, 
and  it  fell  to  the  lot  of  the  absentees  to  bring  to 
camp  their  would  be  captors. 

The  organization  of  a  brass  band  for  the  regiment 
was  conducted  by  its  leader,  George  W.  Arnold. 
Quite  a  number  of  the  performers  were  taken  from 
among  the  enlisted  men,  but  under  the  skilful  leader 
ship  of  Lieut.  Arnold,  it  soon  compared  favorably 
with  the  oldest  bands  in  camp.  This  band  did  good 
service  at  the  battle-fields  on  which  the  regiment  was 
engaged,  in  performing  the  ambulance  duties  of 
-carrying  off  the  wounded  and  burying  the  dead. 
Benjamin  Rowland,  a  member  of  the  band,  deserves 
especial  mention  for  the  heroic  manner  in  which  he 
did  his  duty  at  Roanoke,  Newbern,  and  Camden. 
Posting  himself,  on  each  occasion,  where  he  could 
render  the  most  assistance,  he  would,  on  seeing  a 
comrade  fall,  run  to  his  aid,  while  the  balls  of  all 
kinds  flew  thick,  and  either  drag  or  carry  him  far 
enough  out  of  danger  to  enable  those  with  stretchers 
to  get  and  take  him  to  the  hospital.  Thus  a  large 
number  received  the  surgeon's  skill  soon  after  being 
wounded,  who  might  have  lain  on  the  field  for  hours, 
or  until  the  battle  ceased.  The  entire  band,  as  an 
ambulance  corps,  deserve  much  praise,  as  hundreds 


24        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

of  wounded  soldiers  can  testify.  The  following  are 
the  names  on  the  roll  of  the  Band  of  the  51st  Regi 
ment,  P.  V. :  George  W.  Arnold,  Leader ;  George 
Y.  Hansell,  James  S.  Baird,  Alexander  Earle, 
Drummer ;  Jeremiah  W.  Buck,  Bass  Drum  ;  William 
Workeiser,  Benjamin  Rowland,  Charles  Day,  Wilson 
Forster,  John  Earp,  William  Williams,  James  Haws, 
Justus  Bockius,  John  C.  Millhouse,  Simon  Britton, 
Samuel  G.  Arnold,  William  Earl,  Benjamin  Wat- 
kins,  Charles  Thompson,  Phillip  Jacobs. 

The  51st  struck  tents  several  times  while  in  Camp 
Curtin,  for  sanitary  reasons — policing  the  grounds 
sometimes,  and  at  others  changing  locality.  The 
health  of  the  regiment  was  not  good  while  at  this 
camp,  the  men  being  too  "green  and  raw  "  to  stand 
the  exposure  at  first;  and  the  change  from  sleeping 
in  comfortable  feather  beds  and  dry  rooms  to  lying 
upon  the  damp'  ground  or  hard  boards,  with  but 
scanty  covering,  was  too  sudden  and  severe  for  the 
human  constitution  to  bear/  The  tents  were  of  a 
good  quality  but  the  inmates  were  much  crowded — • 
five  or  six  in  one  common  wedge  or  "A"  tent — 
were  forced  to  lie  "spoon-fashion,"  on  their  sides, 
altogether.  When  one  became  tired  of  lying  in 
that  situation,  and  wished  to  "  turn  over,"  he  had  to 
waken  up  all  of  his  tent-mates  to  "  about  face,"  which 
would  be  done  sometimes  with  a  bad  grace  and  con 
siderable  growling.  The  officers  were  not  subjected 
to  this  inconvenience.  They  were  furnished  with 
large  wall  tents,  and  at  no  time  would  more  than 
three  occupy  one  of  them.  Having  "  bunks  "  erected, 
they  were  nearly  as  comfortable  as  they  could  have 
been  at  home ;  in  consequence,  their  health  was  not 
affected  like  that  of  the  enlisted  men,  who  suffered 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  25 

extremely  with  diarrhoea,  dysentery,  and  rheuma 
tism.  The  change  of  food,  no  doubt,  tended  in  a  great 
measure  to  bring  on  the  first  two  diseases,  aided  by 
the  exposed  condition  of  the  comfortless  sleeping 
quarters.  Typhoid,  camp,  and  other  fevers  began 
to  seize  the  men  towards  the  latter  part  of  their  stay 
in  Camp  Curtin. 

On  the  10th  of  October  new  army  blankets  were 
drawn,  and  added  considerably  to  the  health  and 
comfort  of  the  troops.  But  the  seeds  of  the  different 
diseases  had  been  sown,  and  began  to  take  root  be 
fore  this  comfort  arrived. 

Besides  the  various  amusements,  other  exercises 
were  added  for  the  health  of  the  men.  On  Sundays 
the  different  companies  marched  to  Harrisburg  to 
attend  church.  During  the  week-days  they  would 
exercise  one  hour  at  ''squad  drill,"  two  hours  at 
"company  drill"  in  the  forenoon,  and  in  the  after 
noon  from  two  to  three  hours  in  "  battalion  drill/' 
besides  going  out  on  ''  dress  parade."  Thus  the 
exercise  was  sufficient  in  itself  to  keep  the  men  from 
sinking  into  ennui. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  5th  of  November,  1861, 
Governor  Curtin  presented  the  51st,  52d,  and  53d 
Eegiments,  each  with  a  stand  of  State  colors.  The 
presentation  was  made  by  the  Governor  in  person,  in 
the  presence  of  a  vast  concourse  of  visitors  from  the 
city,  and  Camps  Cameron  and  Greble.  The  regi 
ments  were  closed  en  masse  respectively,  and  composed 
three  sides  of  a  square.  The  ceremonies  were  very 
imposing,  and  the  address  of  the  Governor  was 
listened  to  with  marked  attention.  Many  a  brave 
man  gave  vent  to  his  feelings  during  the  Governor's 
speech.  He  told  them  :  "I  am  looking  hundreds  in 


26        HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

the  face,  who  are  in  perfect  health,  but  who  will 
never  return  to  their  homes,  families  or  friends  again, 
but  their  memories  will  be  enshrined  in  the  hearts 
of  the  generations  of  future  ages."  Alas !  how  pro 
phetic  were  his  words !  Hundreds !  aye,  thousands ! 
whom  he  looked  in  the  face  that  day,  have  passed  to 
"  that  bourne  from  whence  no  traveller  returns"  to 
his  home,  family,  or  friends.  After  the  colors  were 
presented,  several  bands  present  enlivened  the  scene 
with  stirring  harmony,  adding  much  to  the  already 
impressive  ceremony.  After  the  51st  returned  to 
their  quarters,  the  men  appeared  in  better  spirits, 
believing  in  the  adage  that  "Coming  events  cast 
their  shadows  before,"  and  now  having  received 
their  colors  it  augured  that  they  were  soon  to  be 
sent  to  the  front.  Rumors  of  marching  orders  had 
frequently  been  rife  in  camp  before,  but  now  specu 
lations  ran  high  that  the  51st  would  soon  meet  the 
enemy ;  in  fact,  orders  to  be  ready  to  march  were 
already  in,  but  no  definite  time  for  going  had  been 
set.  Still,  there  loomed  up  in  the  distance  a  fair 
prospect  that  the  regiment  should  see  one  fight,  at  least, 
before  the  war  would  be  over.  The  fear  of  not  see 
ing  one  was,  apparently,  the  greatest  trouble  the  men 
had.  Col.  Hartranft  obtained  the  transportation  for 
the  regiment  on  the  evening  of  the  12th  November, 
but  it  was  unknown  to  his  men  at  the  time.  Early 
on  the  morning  of  the  16th  the  regiment  "struck 
tents,"  and  packed  up  preparatory  to  marching.  The 
great  number  of  sick  had  been  provided  with  quar 
ters  at  the  hospital,  and  were  left  behind.  At  noon 
the  drums  beat  the  "  assembly,"  and  the  regiment  was 
soon  in  "  harness,"  eager  to  be  off.  It  remained  in 
line  until  4  p.  M.  The  men,  with  their  heavy  knap- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.       27 

sacks  on  all  the  time,  kept  in  that  trying  position  for 
four  hours,  at  last  were  relieved  by  the  word  of  com 
mand  to  ''  Eight  face,  file  left,  march,"  by  their  colo 
nel.  It  marched  out  of  Camp  Curtin  with  hearts  full 
of  spirit  and  joyous  anticipations,  for  they  now  felt 
for  the  first  time  that  they  were  a  pa#t  of  the  great 
army  of  the  United  States  of  America,  and  entitled 
to  rank  as  such. 


CHAPTEE    III. 

From  Camp  Curtin  to  Baltimore  and  Annapolis — Companies 
Lettered — Reviews — False  Alarm — The  "New  Overcoat "- 
Preparation  to  go  on  the  Fleet — Serenade. 

THE  regiment,  on  leaving  Camp  Curtin  with  flying 
colors,  marched  to  the  "siding"  on  the  Pennsylvania 
Central  road,  between  the  camp  and  ITarrisburg,  to 
where  a  train  of  thirty-seven  cattle  cars  were  in  wait 
ing  to  transport  them  to  Baltimore  via  Northern 
Central  Eailroad.  The  weather  was  very  disagree 
able — snowing,  raining,  and  very  cold.  The  cars 
were  filthy  with  manure,  from  being  recently  used 
for  cattle ;  yet  the  men  were  crowded  into  them,  and 
forced  to  sit  on  each  other's  laps,  or  fix  themselves 
in  the  best  way  they  could.  Four  of  the  cars  being 
used  for  the  transportation  of  the  horses  belonging 
to  the  regiment,  and  for  the  officers  and  their  bag 
gage,  the  remainder  were  for  the  men. 

The  train  left  at  5  P.  M.,  and  arrived  next  morn 
ing  (Sunday)  in  Baltimore,  at  8  o'clock,  having  been 
all  night  on  the  road.  The  men  kept  themselves 
tolerably  warm  until  the  train  reached  Glen  Eock, 


28        HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

about  midnight,  where  it  had  to  lie  over  about  two 
hours,  to  enable  a  passenger  train  to  have  the  road, 
and  to  pass  the  regiment.  While  remaining  there 
the  boys  disembarked,  and  finding  they  had  halted 
in  front  of  a  field  of  corn  fodder,  they  immediately 
appropriated  it  to  their  own  use  for  bedding  purposes. 

The  unfortunate  owner,  whoever  he  may  have 
been,  must  have  rubbed  his  eyes  in  astonishment  on 
looking  over  his  cornfield  the  next  morning,  and 
finding  his  fodder  all  gone. 

The  regiment  halted  again  when  nearer  Baltimore, 
and  this  time  the  boys  foraged  in  earnest.  One  man 
("  scout ")  went  to  a  stately  mansion  a  short  distance 
from  the  road  to  see  what  he  could  find  lying  around 
"loose;"  but  on  entering  the  front  yard,  he  was  con 
fronted  by  an  ugly-looking  mastiff  chained  to  the 
gate-post.  Here  was  a  dilemma,  three  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  and  very  dark.  Outside  the  gate  was  the 
man,  inside  the  dog,  and  a  little  further  a  bake-oven, 
wherein  were  stored  sundry  sweetmeats.  By  the 
oven's  side  stood  an  apple  tree,  on  which  a  number 
of  fowls  were  roosting.  The  "scout"  decided  to 
steal  the  dog  first,  which  he  did,  and  then  appro 
priated  whatever  else  he  could  find  that  he  wanted 
and  didn't  want.  He  brought  to  the  cars,  and  dis 
tributed,  one  dog  and  chain,  one  wash-tub,  four 
bread-pans,  two  one-gallon  jars  of  preserves,  and  a 
few  chickens.  Other  parties  were  out,  and  were 
quite  as  successful  as  the  former,  when  the  whistle 
blew,  and  they  were  soon  again  steaming  to  the 
Monumental  city. 

On  the  arrival  of  the  51st  in  Baltimore,  it  disem 
barked,  and  marched  by  "company  front"  through 
the  principal  streets  to  the  other  side  of  the  city,  to 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.       29 

the  Washington  depot,  where  the  regiment  was 
treated  to  a  cup  of  good  coffee,  bread  and  butter, 
meats  of  various  kinds,  cheese,  &c.  After  the  colla 
tion  was  over,  the  regiment  again  formed,  marched 
through  the  city  by  company  front,  and  halted  at 
Pratt  street  wharf,  where  it  stacked  arms,  and  awaited 
the  loading  of  the  baggage.  While  at  "rest"  in 
Pratt  street  the  regiment  was  visited  by  many  Union 
citizens,  who  brought  fruits,  cakes,  and  "other  re 
freshments,"  and  distributed  them  with  a  lavish 
hand  At  6  o'clock  P.  M.,  they  broke  "stacks," 
and  marched  back  to  the  Washington  depot,  and 
there  embarked  for  Annapolis,  where  they  arrived 
at  2  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  18th  of  Novem 
ber,  1861. 

After  its  arrival,  while  groping  around  in  the 
Egyptian  darkness  to  find  out  their  locality,  they 
were  marched  to  the  Naval  Academy  buildings  and 
furnished  with  good  quarters  until  late  in  the  after 
noon  of  the  same  day,  when  the  regiment  ''pitched 
tents"  on  the  lawn  in  the  rear  of  the  buildings,  and 
formed  "  Camp  Burnside,"  which  was  the  first  en 
campment  of  the  regiment  in  "  Secessia."  Nothing 
of  especial  interest  took  place  here  except  the  final 
touch  to  the  organization  of  the  regiment,  and  some 
hard  drilling.  The  lettering  of  the  companies  was 
here  completed  as  follows :  Capt.  Wm.  J.  Bolton, 
Co.  "A,"  Capt.  Fernando  Bell,  Co.  "B,"  Capt.  Wm. 
Allebaugh,  Co.  "  C,"  Capt.  Edward  Schall,  Co.  «  D," 
Capt.  G.  H.  Hassenplug,  Co.  "  E,"  Capt.  R.  E.  Tay 
lor,  Co.  "F,"  Capt.  A.  Snyder,  Co.  <;  G,"  Capt.  J. 
Merril  Lynn,  Co.  "  II,"  Capt.  Geo.  K.  Pechin,  Co. 
"  I,"  Capt.  John  Titus,  Co.  "  K." 

After  the  complete  organization  of  the  companies 


30        HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

and  regiment,  the  "hard  drilling"  began  in  earnest. 
The  ground  on  which  the  regiment  drilled  was  un 
even  and  broken,  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Sev 
ern  river,  which  at  this  place  flows  through  a  tract 
by  nature  washed  into  deep  ravines  and  gorges, 
covered  partly  with  scrubby  bushes  and  various 
kinds  of  briars ;  altogether  an  undesirable  piece  of 
ground  to  drill  on,  in  the  views  of  the  men,  but  just 
the  spot,  in  preference  of  all  others,  in  the  view  of 
Col.  llartranft,  to  which  the  men  will  cheerfully 
testify  when  they  let  their  minds  wander  back  to  the 
times  they  used  to  "double  quick"  it  over  one  hill 
after  another,  much  to  the  gratification  of  their  field 
officers,  who  wanted  to  get  the  boys  "  inured "  to 
drilling  on  that  kind  of  skirmish  ground.  While 
here  the  "boys"  enjoyed  themselves  "hugely"  be 
tween  drill  hours,  by  going  boating,  fishing  and  oys- 
tering. 

On  the  3d  of  December,  the  regiment  "struck 
tents"  and  marched  out  on  the  railroad  towards  An 
napolis  Junction,  about  two  miles  from  the  city,  and 
formed  a  new  camp,  called  "  Carnp  Union."  This  was 
the  most  beautiful  one  the  regiment  ever  had, 
forming  a  crescent,  and  situated  on  a  slightly  ele 
vated  piece  of  ground,  at  the  top  of  which  was  regi 
mental  headquarters,  the  company  streets  radiating 
thence  like  the  spokes  of  half  a  wheel,  the  quarters 
of  the  company,  or  "line"  officers,  being  at  the 
"  right "  of  each  company. 

Considerable  labor  had  been  expended  by  the  men 
in  fitting  up  this  camp  with  evergreens,  pines,  ce 
dars,  laurel,  &c.  At  the  main  entrance  was  a  most 
magnificently  wrought  "  arch  "  of  a  evergreens,"  in 
the  centre  of  which,  as  a  ''  keystone,"  were  the  fig- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       31 

ures  "51, "also  made  of  evergreens.  A  splendid 
border  of  young  pines  extended  all  round  the  front 
of  the  camp,  giving  it  an  aristocratic  appearance. 
Pines  were  planted  on  either  side  of  the  streets, 
nearly  shutting  the  tents  out  from  the  eye,  and  at  the 
ends  of  the  streets  were  arches  similar  to  the  one  at 
the  main  entrance,  but  not  so  elaborate,  and  instead 
of  the  number  of  the  regiment  being  on  eacli  arch, 
the  letter  of  the  company  hung  as  a  pendant.  Many 
of  the  tents  boasted  of  splendid  arbors  over  them, 
which  proved  as  useful  as  they  were  ornamental, 
protecting  the  quarters  from  the  violence  of  storms. 
Ditches  were  dug  around  the  tents  for  the  purpose 
of  carrying  oft'  the  water  during  a  heavy  rain.  The 
tents  were  floored  with  "cord  wood,"  on  which 
the  men  slept,  serving  to  keep  them  off'  the  ground, 
and  also  to  save  them  from  getting  wet,  which  was 
frequently  the  case  when  a  ditch  was  not  sufficient 
to  carry  off'  all  the  water,  and  would  overflow.  The 
distance  the  water  for  the  use  of  the  camp  had  to  be 
carried  made  it  very  inconvenient,  as  no  one  could 
go  after  it  without  a  written  pass,  signed  by  the 
company  commander,  and  countersigned  by  the 
colonel.  A  strong  guard  was  posted  all  round  the 
camp,  and  they  dared  not  let  any  one  cross  their 
"  beats."  The  men  all  too  well  remember  that  no  very 
large  number  of  passes  were  signed  at  that  time  in 
one  day;  and,  like  the  "hog"  business,  they  often 
were  compelled  to  resort  to  various  methods  of  get 
ting  through  the  guard,  one  of  which  was  by  forging 
passes  or  altering  the  dates  on  old  ones. 

On  the  5th  of  December,  Col.  Hartranft  raised  a 
flag-staff'  of  ninety  feet  in  height,  in  front  of  his 
quarters,  and  the  next  morning  as  the  sun  was  rising 


32        HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

he  flung  to  the  breeze  the  starry  flag  which  his  regi 
ment  so  nobly  defended  for  nearly  four  years  on 
more  than  a  score  of  bloody  fields.  The  raising  of 
this  flag-staff  caused  the  men  to  conclude  that  they 
were  to  stay  in  Camp  Union  until  the  close  of  the 
war,  which  they  supposed  was  very  near  at  hand,  and 
the  fear  of  being  discharged  from  the  service  without 
seeing  a  fight  began  to  seize  them  again.  It  was 
about  this  time  that  the  regiment  first  received 
the  intimation  of  joining  "  Burnside's  Coast  Expedi 
tion,"  which  had  considerable  influence  in  allaying 
the  fear  of  not  "  getting  into  a  fight." 

While  lying  at  this  camp  the  regiment  was  sub 
jected  to  hard  and  constant  drilling,  with  frequent 
''  reviews,"  the  first  of  which  took  place  on  the  13th 
day  of  December,  1861,  of  the  entire  "  Coast  Divi 
sion,"  as  far  as  then  organized.  This  partial  organ 
ization  at  a  future  time  formed  the  2d  brigade  of  the 
Coast  Division.  This  review  was  by  Gen.  Foster 
and  staff.  On  the  next  day  (14th)  another  grand 
review  was  to  have  taken  place  by  Gen.  Ambrose 
Everett  Burnside,  but  from  some  inexplicable  cause 
he  did  not  attend  the  review,  so  Gen.  Foster  and 
staff  substituted  themselves.  On  the  19th  December 
the  Coast  Division  being  fully  organized,  another 
grand  review  took  place  by  Gen.  Foster,  Gov.  Hicks, 
and  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Maryland.  On 
the  next  day,  the  20th.  was  still  another  review. 
This  one  was  for  the  special  benefit  of  Gen.  Burn- 
side  in  f.ropria  persona.  On  the  26th  the  51st  was 
again  inspected  by  Gen.  G.  B.  McClellan's  staff,  and 
received  much  credit  from  it  for  clean  arms  and 
clothing,  discipline  and  soldierly  appearance.  At  the 
beginning  of  December,  1861,  the  51st  had  been  as- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  33 

signed  to  the  2d  brigade,  commanded  by  Col.  Ed. 
Harlan,  of  the  8th  Connecticut  Vols.,  in  the  1st  divi 
sion,  under  command  of  Gen.  Foster,  and  retained 
that  position  for  a  long  period  of  time. 

The  weather,  toward  the  close  of  the  year  18  61 
began  to  give  the  soldiers  a  taste  of  winter.  Snow 
squalls  were  frequent,  with  a  good  deal  of  rain. 
They  had  not  yet  learned  how  to  make  themselves 
comfortable  in  their  tents.  But  experience,  and  the 
necessity  of  inventing,  soon  began  to  develop  itself, 
yet  too  late  to  do  much  towards  building  fire-places 
in  the  tents.  Even  had  they  possessed  the  knowl 
edge  of  keeping  fires  in  tents,  very  little  time  was 
afforded  to  do  it,  excepting  after  nightfall,  when  the 
fatigue  of  constant  drilling  and  other  duties  through 
out  the  day  prevented  the  men  in  a  great  measure 
from  laboring  for  their  own  good.  The  time  of  the 
regiment  was  so  "  mapped  out "  for  performing  the 
various  duties  that  the  men  could  scarcely  get  time 
sufficient  to  keep  their  clothing  and  persons  clean. 
The  result  was,  they  began  to  be  "thickly  popu 
lated,"  so  constant  were  the  men  kept  at  drilling, 
policing,  on  reviews,  and  dress  parades.  The  latter, 
in  those  days,  were  always  a  "  bore,"  for  they  always 
wound  up  with  "  passing  in  review,"  first  in  common 
time,  then  quick  time,  then  double  quick.  This  last 
movement  was  useless ;  also  a  nuisance,  for  it  only 
tended  to  sweat  the  men..  It  taking  place  in  the 
evenings,  with  no  fires  to  dry  their  sweaty  clothes, 
the  men  were  obliged  to  lie  down  in  their  tents  on 
the  cold,  damp  earth,  or  next  to  it,  and  thereby  sowed 
the  seeds  of  innumerable  diseases  that  have  laid  many 
a  brave  heart  in  the  silent  and  distant  grave. 

About  midnight  of  December  19th,  1861,  quite  an 


84        HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

excitement  was  gotten  up  by  the  d'Epeneuil  Zouaves, 
who  were  encamped  on  the  ground  that  at  a  later 
day  was  occupied  by  the  barracks  of  Camp  Parole. 
For  some  indefinite  cause,  they  beat  the  "  long  roll " 
and  fired  several  shots,  creating  an  alarm  and  belief 
that  a  body  of  rebels  had  attacked  them.  The  va 
rious  neighboring  regiments  took  the  alarm,  and  fell 
in  line  of  battle,  some  fully  equipped,  some  partially 
so.  A  great  many  men  were  full  equipped,  yet  in 
their  shirts  and  drawers  only,  being  hatless  and  with 
out  shoes  on  their  feet.  The  51st  was  not  "  sold  "  so 
cheap,  as  it  was  the  Zouaves'  nearest  neighbor. 
Col.  Hartranft  sprang  from  his  "  couch,"  and,  run 
ning  out  doors  en  dishabille,  soon  learned  that  it 
was  a  false  alarm. 

On  Sundays  those  who  could  get  off  generally  went 
to  church  in  the  city  of  Annapolis,  notwithstanding 
Chaplain  Mallory  did  all  in  his  power  to  give  them 
spiritual  instructions  in  camp,  but  with  little  or  no 
success.  Lieut.  George  Arnold,  the  leader  of  the 
band,  was  summoned  to  bring  his  band  to  Mr.  Mai- 
lory's  quarters  and  discourse  some  sacred  music,  in 
lieu  of  the  ringing  of  church  bells,  to  assemble  the 
congregation.  The  band,  after  exhausting  all  their 
wind  in  the  attempt,  returned  to  their  quarters,  evi 
dently  disgusted  with  such  a  decided  failure.  Mr. 
Mallory  shared  their  mortification,  and  felt  consider 
ably  chagrined  at  his  unsuccessful  efforts  to  instil 
morality  into,  as  he  must  have  thought,  such  a 
"  heathenish  "  regiment.  On  one  occasion  Col.  Har 
tranft  came  to  his  rescue,  by  having  a  general 
inspection  and  a  long  regimental  drill,  which  was 
supposed  to  be  as  punishment  for  their  non-attend 
ance  at  church. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       35 

The  troops  encamped  at  Annapolis  and  its  vicinity 
at  this  time  got  the  impression  that  the  rebellion  was 
virtually  over,  and  they  looked  upon  the  arduous 
duties  of  camp  life,  as  imposed  on  them,  as  alto 
gether  unnecessary,  and  they  all  became  very  much 
dissatisfied.  -  Alas !  little  did  they  know  of  what 
they  all  had  to  go  through  ere  such  a  blessing  should 
become  a  fact.  Notwithstanding  their  onerous  du 
ties,  the  51st  was  highly  gratified  in  being  taken  out 
skirmishing  on  Sunday  afternoon,  December  8,  1861, 
for  the  first  time  since  the  men  had  adopted  arms  as 
a  profession.  The  regiment  deployed  as  skirmishers, 
and  marched  about  seven  miles  towards  the  "  Junc 
tion."  Halting  in  a  sandy  desert  for  a  rest,  the 
regiment  stacked  arms  in  a  field,  and  "  broke  ranks," 
when  the  boys  commenced  their  "  first  raid,"  but 
only  succeeded  in  finding  an  old  dilapidated  frame 
building,  full  of  leaf  tobacco,  of  which  they  supplied 
themselves  to  their  fullest  desires.  They  carried 
large  arm  loads  into  camp,  where  they  arrived  after 
nightfall,  sore-footed  and  tired. 

On  the  12th  of  December,  1861,  the  51st  could 
boast  of  being  blessed,  or  cursed,  for  the  first  time 
with  having  their  own  sutlers,  Messrs.  Kodermel 
and  Hartranft,  the  latter  a  relative  of  the  esteemed 
colonel  of  the  51st.  Their  prices  were  very  exorbi 
tant  for  the  articles  sold.  Notwithstanding  the  high 
prices,  the  men  found  the  sutlers  a  great  convenience, 
as  they  kept  such  necessary  articles  as  the  soldier 
most  needed  ;  but,  as  the  regiment  had  not  been  paid 
since  its  enlistment,  credit  was  given  until  pay  day, 
on  orders  signed  by  company  commanders.  The 
high  prices  were  occasioned  through  the  difficulty  of 
obtaining  the  goods,  as  well  as  through  the  risk  of 


36        HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY -FIRST   REGIMENT 

loss  by  capture,  losses  in  credit,  and  the  high  rates 
of  freight  that  sutlers  were  forced  to  pay  for  trans 
portation.  During  the  encampment  at  Annapolis, 
the  mails  arrived  very  regularly,  twice  a  day  from  the 
North.  Wm.  Percival  Schall,  of  Co.  D,  was  appointed 
mail  agent  for  the  regiment,  discharging  the  duties 
with  much  ability  and  strict  integrity.  He  held  the 
position  until  his  discharge  from  the  service  in  March, 
1865,  while  lying  at  Fort  Morton,  in  front  of  Peters 
burg,  Va.  After  Schall's  discharge,  Joseph  Logan, 
drummer,  of  Co.  E,  was  appointed  to  fill  the  vacancy, 
which  he  did  with  much  credit  to  himself  until  the 
final  discharge  of  the  regiment  from  the  service  of 
the  United  States. 

Previous  to  the  regiment's  embarking  on  board  of 
the  fleet,  ammunition  for  target  practice  was  issued  ; 
but  a  large  quantity  of  it  proved  of  a  very  poor  kind. 
Many  of  the  cartridges  were  filled  with  sand,  instead 
of  powder,  some  with  nothing  but  the  ball,  and 
some  contained  no  balls,  but  were  filled  entirely 
with  powder.  This  ammunition  had  been  put  up  at 
the  Washington,  D.  C.,  Arsenal,  by  those  who  cer 
tainly  did  sympathize  with  the  South.  While  lying 
at  Camp  Union,  the  regiment  drew  a  requisition  for 
a  large  quantity  of  all  kinds  of  army  clothing,  pre 
paratory  for  the  expedition.  Every  man  was  well 
supplied  with  good  and  comfortable  clothing,  which 
made  them  like  this  camp  much  better  than  that 
charnel  camp,  Camp  Curtin. 

A  detail  from  the  51st  was  sent  into  Annapolis, 
about  the  10th  of  December,  to  do  provost  and 
patrol  duty,  and  remained  there  until  within  a  few  days 
of  their  departure  on  the  fleet.  Their  duty  was  not 
very  onerous;  it  consisted  in  arresting  disorderly  and 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  37 

intoxicated  soldiers,  and  those  who  ventured  to  town 
with  a  pass  not  properly  signed,  or  without  passes. 
The  latter  would  generally  be  put  under  guard, 
and  escorted  to  their  respective  regimental  camps, 
and  turned  over  to  their  commanders  to  receive 
whatever  punishment  their  cases  called  for.  They 
also  had  to  arrest  all  citizens  after  10  p.  M.,  with  or 
without  passes,  unless  they  had  the  countersign. 
One  of  the  patrol,  Levi  Bolton,  of  Co.  A,  on  one 
occasion  halted  Gen.  Burnside,  and  was  about  taking 
him  to  the  guard-house  to  lock  him  up,  when  the 
general,  after  some  studying,  bethought  him  what 
the  countersign  was,  and  was  released.  Bolton  knew 
him,  but  clung  to  him  as  if  he  was  a  stranger.  After 
the  general  was  permitted  to  go,  he  gave  the  man 
great  credit  for  his  vigilance  and  resolution. 

The  friends  of  the  soldiers  of  the  51st  made  good 
use  of  Adams'  Express  while  the  regiment  lay  at 
Camp  Union,  by  sending  boxes  of  ''good  things"  to 
the  boys ;  but,  to  the  eternal  disgrace  of  the  very  not 
enterprising  company,  the  boxes  and  various  kinds 
of  parcels  remained  in  their  offices  until  the  major 
part  of  their  contents  would  be  spoiled,  and  have  to 
be  thrown  away  when  the  package  came  to  be 
opened.  The  writer  of  this  has  received  some  boxes 
five  months  after  being  shipped.  Of  course  nothing 
could  be  used,  and  this  at  a  time  when  it  would  be 
no  difficulty  for  them  to  arrive  in  five  days.  Some 
boxes  were  shipped  to  me  that  have  not  arrived  yet. 
The  writer  only  mentions  his  case  as  a  type  of  thou 
sands  of  others  like  it. 

On  Monday,  December  23,  1861,  the  paymaster  of 
the  U.  S.  A.  paid  the  regiment  its  first  pay  due,  viz., 
two  months  and  the  fractional  parts  of  months  from 


38        HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

enlistment  up  to  October  31st  of  that  year;  which 
gladdened  the  hearts  of  all,  for  many  of  the  men  had 
enlisted  in  August  preceding,  and  had  been  four 
months  without  money  ;  consequently  many  of  their 
families  suffered  for  the  necessaries  of  life,  and  this 
pay  was  a  God-send  to  them.  For  be  it  known  that 
men  who-  enlisted  in  those  days  did  so  from  purely 
patriotic  motives.  No  big  bounties  were  in  anticipa 
tion  ;  in  fact,  there  were  not  even  little  bounties  ex 
pected,  but  all  went  forth  to  do  battle  for  their 
country  from  a  sense  of  duty  only. 

On  December  26th,  1861,  Col.  Hartranft  inaugura 
ted  a  novel  mode  of  punishment  for  the  unruly  and 
disobedient,  and  all  others  whose  crimes  were  of  the 
higher  order,  such  as  getting  drunk,  breaking  guard, 
&c.  It  consisted  of  a  barrel  with  one  end  knocked 
out,  and  a  hole  in  the  other  sufficiently  large  to 
allow  the  head  of  the  culprit  to  protrude  above  it. 
The  introduction  of  this  novelty  afforded  considerable 
amusement  for  the  boys.  As  an  illustration,  on  the 
first  day  of  its  introduction  the  boys  "dubbed"  it 
the  "  overcoat,"  and  one  man,  (poor  fellow  !  he  sealed 
his  devotion  to  his  country  with  his  life's  blood  at 
the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  Va.,  May  6th,  1864,) 
had  asked  the  colonel  for  a  pass  to  go  into  the  city, 
and  was  refused,  for  the  colonel  knew  he  wanted  to 
go  only  for  a  drunken  frolic,  and  would  be  picked  up 
by  the  provost  guard  and  severely  punished.  But 
on  being  refused,  he  felt  bound  to  "  win  the  horse  or 
lose  the  saddle,"  and  broke  guard,  went  to  town,  got 
"  tight,"  and  raised  "  old  Harry."  He  was  fortunate 
enough  to  evade  the  patrol,  but  not  so  fortunate  in 
evading  the  colonel,  whom  he  met  as  he  was  coming 
into  camp,  and  who  arrested  and  made  him  wear  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       39 

"  new  overcoat."  Pretty  soon  after  he  got  the  barrel 
put  on  him  a  comrade  came  into  camp  eating  an 
apple.  The  prisoner  ask'ed  him,  as  he  was  passing, 
for  one.  His  comrade  offered  it ;  but  a  difficulty 
here  arose  as  to  how  he  was  to  get  hold  of  it,  for  the 
sides  of  the  barrel  completely  enveloped  him,  and 
his  arms  hung  uselessly  at  his  side,  for  the  lower  end 
of  the  barrel  extended  below  the  ends  of  his  fingers. 
However,  it  was  decided  that  the  apple  should  be 
placed  on  the  head  of  the  barrel,  and  thereby  he 
might,  by  twisting  and  turning  the  barrel,  be  able  to 
eat  it,  if  the  apple  would  only  roll  to  his  mouth  so 
he  could  catch  it  with  his  teeth  and  get  a  "bite." 
But  on  "diving"  around  to  catch  the  fruit,  the  poor 
fellow  stubbed  his  toe,  and,  his  hands  being  confined 
by  the  barrel,  down  he  went,  rolling  into  a  small 
ditch  close  by,  unable  to  help  himself  in  the  least. 
His  moans  and  grunts  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
guards  aif  well  as  his  comrades,  who  went  to  his 
rescue,  and  they  soon  set  him  on  his  "pins"  again, 
"  a  sadder  if  not  a  wiser  man."  He  had  bruised 
himself  a  little,  and  his  opinion  of  the  new  overcoat 
ivas  not  very  favorable. 

On  the  29th  day  of  December,  1861,  the  regiment, 
while  out  on  drill,  received  marching  orders,  to 
report  at  12  o'clock,  noon,  of  the  next  day,  on  board 
of  the  fleet  then  assembled  off  the  Naval  School  at 
Annapolis,  with  three  days'  cooked  rations  and  forty 
rounds  of  ammunition  to  each  man.  Speculation 
now  ran  high  as  to  the  expedition's  destination. 
Some  suggested  up  the  York  river,  Ya.,  some  the 
James  river,  and  very  few  thought  it  possible  that  it 
would  go  on  the  ocean.  But  all  their  conjectures 
were  doomed  to  be  disappointed !  The  next  day 


40        HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

and  several  days  thereafter  found  the  Coast  Division 
still  in  camp,  but  for  what  cause  none  could  explain. 
The  vessels  had  been  arriving  for  several  weeks 
past,  but  all  that  were  to  go  had  not  arrived  up  to 
the  above  date.  All  the  preparations  were  being 
made  by  (ren.  Burnside  as  expeditiously  as  possible. 
Loading  provisions,  water,  and  ammunition,  taking 
in  coal  and  wood,  cattle,  horses,  artillery,  &c.f  all  had 
to  be  done  by  the  soldiers,  and  only  those  who 
assisted  in  the  stupendous  labor  can  have  any  idea 
of  the  magnitude  of  the  work  done.  The  loading 
was  not  completed  till  the  5th  of  January,  1862. 

On  the  31st  of  December,  1861,  the  51st  was  mustered 
for  two  months'  pay,  and  also  had  a  general  inspection 
by  Gen.  McClellan's  staff.  After  muster  and  inspection 
were  over  an  accident  occurred  that  deprived  a  man, 
James  Hamilton,  of  Co.  I,  of  one  of  his  hands.  He,  in 
company  with  several  comrades,  was  foolishly  play 
ing  with  a  loaded  pistol,  when,  either  by  accident  or 
design,  the  pistol  was  discharged,  and  the  ball  passed 
through  the  palm  of  his  hand,  creating  a  frightful 
wound,  and  disabling  him  from  ever  participating  in 
the  various  scenes  of  the  regiment.  In  the  evening 
before  New  Year  the  band  of  the  51st  honored  Col. 
Hartranft  and  staff  with  a  fine  serenade,  after  which 
many  good  things  were  "said  and  done."  Again, 
following  this,  about  midnight,  Col.  H.  and  staff  were 
flatteringly  honored  by  a  splendid  serenade  from  the 
magnificent  band  of  the  51st  regiment  N.  Y.  S.  Y. 
The  colonel  reciprocated  the  honor  handsomely  by 
extending  an  invitation  to  them  to  "come  into"  his 
quarters  and  partake  of  some  refreshments,  to  which 
they  did  full  justice. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       41 


PART    II, -186 


CHAPTBE  I. 

The  New   Year  of  1862 — A  rough  night — Company  drills — 
Liquor  smuggling — Paid  off— Going  aboard  the  Fleet. 

THE  next  day,  Wednesday,  beginning  the  New 
Year  of  1862,  speculations  were  rife  as  to  where  the 
men  and  regiment  would  be  that  time  next  year. 
Many  of  the  stout  hearts  and  buoyant  spirits  of  the 
51st  enjoyed  that  day  who  did  not  see  the  ushering 
in  of  another  New  Year.  It  was  spent  in  hard 
drilling.  The  weather  was  mild  throughout  the  day, 
but  became  cloudy  towards  night ;  the  wind  rose 
and  blew  a  perfect  hurricane,  untenting  many  a  poor 
fellow,  by  raising  his  canvas  house,  poles  and  pins, 
oft'  the  ground,  exposing  them  very  unceremoniously 
to  all  the  furies  of  the  then  prevailing  storm.  But, 
luckily  for  a  great  many  of  them,  orders  to  march 
that  night  had  been  received,  and  the  wise  ones  slept 
with  their  shoes  and  as  much  of  their  clothing  on 
as  they  conveniently  could ;  thus  when  they  became 
"  unhoused,"  they  were  prepared  for  the  emergency 
to  some  extent.  The  order  to  be  ready  to  march  at 
an  hour's  notice  was  kept  a  standing  one,  and  very 
little  was  done  except  company  drilling  until  Janu 
ary  the  6th,  1862  ;  but  there  was  enough  of  that  kind 


42       HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIBST   KEGIMENT 

of  drilling  to  make  the  boys  care  very  little  whether 
"school  kept  "or  not;  but  it  had  to  be  done,  for 
after  once  on  the  vessel,  no  drilling  could  be  done 
whatever.  While  waiting  two  weeks  to  embark  on 
board  the  fleet,  stringent  orders  had  been  issued  by 
the  provost  marshal  of  Annapolis  against  selling 
liquor  to  soldiers ;  but  there  were  a  number  of  citi 
zens  who  would  smuggle  a  few  canteensful  into 
camp  at  a  time,  and  find  a  ready  market  for  it  at 
exorbitant  prices,  thereby  furnishing  the  soldiers 
with  as  much  liquor  as  they  desired,  notwithstanding 
the  provost  marshal's  orders  against  it.  The  soldiers 
all  carefully  concealed  the  sources  from  which  they 
obtained  it.  One  man  of  Company  D,  Jacob  Fizone, 
supplied  himself  with  a  pair  of  lieutenant's  shoulder- 
straps,  and  furnished  himself  and  friends  with  all  the 
liquors  they  wanted,  without  detection. 

On  Sunday,  January  5th,  1862,  the  Paymaster  of  the 
U.  S.  A.  again  visited  the  51st  and  began  about  noon 
to  pay  off*  the  regiment,  concluding  about  an  hour 
after  midnight.  This  was  the  second  payment  to  the 
regiment,  and  was  for  the  two  months  of  November 
and  December,  1861 — being  the  only  payment  the 
51st  ever  received  wherein  it  was  paid  up  so  close 
to  time,  leaving  only  five  days  unpaid. 

The  next  day  was  a  busy  one,  preparing  to  go  on 
the  fleet.  The  sick  that  were  thought  to  be  con 
valescent  had  all  been  sent  on  board  several  days 
before ;  those  who  were  in  a  more  critical  condition 
had  been  sent  to  the  hospitals  in  and  around 
Annapolis,  Md.,  and  Washington,  D.  0.,  to  remain 
until  recovered  sufficiently  to  be  forwarded,  at  some 
future  time,  to  the  regiment. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.       43 


CHAPTER    II. 

Leaving  Camp  Union — The  Cossack  and  Scout — Burnsidc  Ex 
pedition  leaves  Annapolis — The  reception  at  Fortress  Mon 
roe — The  Rip-raps — The  first  shot  heard — Enthusiasm  of  the 
troops — Again  on  the  ocean — Storm  at  sea — Hatteras  Inlet 
— Narrow  escape  of  the  Scout — Wreck  of  the  "  City  of  New 
York." 

JANUARY  6th,  1862,  found  the  51st  entering  on 
its  ever  memorable  and  useful  career. . 

At  8  A.  M.  it  "struck  tents"  and  prepared  to  va 
cate  "Camp  Union."  Three  day's  cooked  rations 
were  in  the  haversacks.  Forty  rounds  to  eacli  man 
of  "buck  and  ball"  were  in  the  cartridge-boxes. 
An  explanation  is  somewhat  necessary  here  in 
reference  to  the  "  buck  and  ball."  It  will  be  re 
membered  that  the  arms  issued  at  Harrisburg  to 
the  51st  were  of  the  "  Harper's  Ferry  pattern." 
The  ammunition  for  those  muskets  was  of  a  very 
primitive  character  when  compared  with  the  cart 
ridge  in  the  more  advanced  state  of  the  rebellion, 
being  a  giobulous  ball  with  three  buck  shot  at  the 
top  of  the  cartridge.  Those  of  a  later  date  were 
conical  or  elongated  balls,  without  the  "  buck." 

At  noon  the  regiment  "  slung  knapsacks "  and 
left  for  the  wharf  at  Annapolis  to  embark,  which  it 
began  to  do  at  3  P.  M.  Six  companies  went  on 
board  the  U.  S.  transport  steamer  "  Cossack,"  Capt. 
Bennett,  Master,  viz. :  companies  B,  D,  E,  G,  H,  and 
I ;  companies  A,  C,  F,  and  K  embarked  on  board 
of  the  schooner  "  Scout." 

Iliorht  glad  were  the  boys  to  have  a  chance  to  get 


44:        HISTOKY    OF   THE   FIFTY  FIRST   KEGIMKNT 

rid  of  their  overloaded  knapsacks?.  The  day  was 
very  disagreeable  for  marching.  A  snow  had  fallen 
of  about  two  inches  in  depth ;  and  although  the 
march  was  less  than  three  miles,  yet  being  unin 
viting  under  foot  to  men  burdened  with  heavy 
knapsacks  and  unused  to  such  marching,  they  felt 
as  much  fatigued  as  they  were  on  longer  and  harder 
marches  at  a  later  time. 

After  all  had  got  on  the  fleet,  the  six  companies 
on  the  "  Cossack"  under  Col.  Hartranft,  found  them 
selves  very  much  crowded,  and  huddled  together 
more  like  a  herd  of  cattle  than  of  human  beings. 
Will  the  government  ever  learn  how  to  transport 
its  defenders  with  some  little  regard  to  their  com 
fort?  It  is  a  burning  shame  that  soldiers  are 
stowed  away  on  vessels  and  in  cars  like  so  much 
merchandise !  no,  not  like  merchandise,  for  that  is 
generally  put  in  clean  conveyances,  but  the  poor 
soldiers  are  frequently  put  to  ride  hundreds  of 
miles  in  cars  that  have  a  depth  of  several  inches  of 
manure  on  the  floors  from  the  last  load  of  cattle 
they  contained.  The  four  companies,  under  com 
mand  of  Lieut.  Col.  Thos.  S.  Bell,  that  were  put  on 
the  "Scout"  fared  much  better  for  room  and  venti 
lation  than  the  six  did. 

The  steamer  Cossack  had  three  decks — a  lower, 
a  middle  or  state-room  deck  and  the  hurricane 
deck.  Several  companies  were  stowed  away  in  the 
hold,  where  the  heated  and  fetid  air  was  enough  to 
breed  and  spread  a  contagion  throughout  the  whole 
fleet.  The  saloon  was  occupied  by  the  officers  of 
the  field,  staff)  and  line,  in  company  with  a  few  pri 
vate  passengers.  Several  of  the  state-rooms  were 
occupied  by  a  number  of  newspaper  reporters,  a  few 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.       45 

U.  S.  government  detectives,  and  the  band  of  the 


regiment. 


The  ''  Cossack  "  carried  two  splendid  steel  three- 
inch  Wiard  rifled  guns  amidships.  The  cooking  for 
the  six  companies  was  done  in  the  cook-room,  which 
was  located  on  the  lower  deck,  amidships,  and  had 
to  be  performed  by  a  detail  of  three  or  four  soldiers 
daily,  from  some  one  company  ;  no  detail  could  stand 
it  for  more  than  twenty-four  hours  at  a  time,  as  the 
heat  was  so  intense,  and  it  required  them  to  be  very 
industrious  in  order  to  get  enough  cooked  to  last  for 
one  day,  as  the  "  coppers  "  were  not  large  enough  to 
cook  more  than  what  would  supply  two  companies 
at  a  time. 

After  getting  the  51st  on  board  the  "  Cossack  " 
and  the  "  Scout,"  the  regiment  rode  at  anchor  off  An 
napolis  until  fifteen  minutes  before  nine  o'clock  on 
the  morning  of  the  9th  of  January.  At  the  same 
time  the  entire  fleet  weighed  anchor  and  steamed 
down  the  Chesapeake,  the  "  Cossack "  having  the 
schooners  "Scout"  and  "Kecruit"  in  tow. 

The  preparations  for  this  grand  expedition  were 
of  the  most  elaborate  character.  For  weeks  before 
starting  on  its  destination  every  precaution  had  been 
taken  by  its  able  commander  to  make  success  cer 
tain,  as  it  afterwards  proved.  Very  little  rest,  by 
day  or  night,  was  obtained  by  either  Gen.  Burnside 
or  Gen.  Jesse  L.  Eeno.  In  their  arduous  duties  they 
were  ably  assisted  by  their  brilliant  staffs,  (of  one  of 
which  was  Lieut.  Morris,  of  the  51st  P.  V.,)  from  the 
original  conception  of  the  expedition  till  its  final  and 
illustrious  close.  Somewhere  near  seventy  or  eighty 
vessels  of  different  kinds  and  classes  made  up  the 
fleet.  It  was  a  magnificent  sight  to  see  it  under 


46        HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

way.  All  the  vessels  started  in  company,  but  when 
the  Cossack,  with  her  two  consorts,  arrived  off  the 
mouth  of  the  Potomac  river  only  nine  vessels  were 
in  sight,  she  having  distanced  the  entire  fleet. 

While  running  down  the  Chesapeake  the  men  en 
joyed  themselves  very  much,  having  cleared  room 
enough  for  a  cotillion  set,  they  enjoyed  dancing  to 
their  heart's  content,  the  band  -furnishing  excellent 
music  for  the  occasion. 

At  one  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  10th  the 
"  Cossack  "  dropped  her  anchor  a  little  below  the 
mouth  of  the  Kappahannock,  on  account  of  a  dense 
fog  then  prevailing,  and  lay  by  till  three  o'clock  P.  M. 
of  the  same  day.  As  the  51st  passed  the  mouths 
of  the  York  and  other  rivers,  between  Annapolis 
and  Fortress  Monroe,  the  rumors  as  to  its  destina 
tion  were  more  prevailing,  if  possible,  than  ever  be 
fore  :  some  even  pretended  to  know  where  they  were 
going,  but  they  were  disappointed  in  nearly,  or  quite, 
all  of  their  conjectures. 

It  must  be  here  stated,  that  the  crowded  condition 
of  the  steamer  began  to  be  a  serious  annoyance.  Al 
though  the  vessel  was  intended  to  afford  a  reason 
able  amount  of  comfort  to  the  soldiers  on  board,  yet 
such  was  not  the  case.  Many  were  obliged  to  re 
main  up  all  night,  so  as  to  furnish  room  enough  in 
the  bunks  for  those  who  slept  at  night ;  when  these 
in  turn  would  sleep  in  daylight.  This  continued 
from  the  6th  of  January  to  the  7th  of  February, 
1862,  in  order  to  get  their  needed  sleep  and  rest. 

The  issues  of  rations  were  of  an  imperfect  charac 
ter,  for  all  had  to  be  cooked  before  issued  to  the  men, 
there  being  but  the  one  small  workroom,  for  which 
each  'company  was  obliged  to  await  its  turn  ;  and  to 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       47 

their  credit  be  it  said,  they  did  wait  with  as  good  a 
grace  as  possible.  Still  some  dissatisfied  spirits  "had 
to  have  their  "growl,"  which  appeared  to  benefit 
some  of  them  nearly  as  much  as  did  their  rations. 
Both  the  regimental  and  line  officers  had  been  ap 
pealed  to  for  a  remedy,  but  with  no  success,  for  they 
were  in  but  a  very  little  better  situation  than  the 
men,  and  as  they  found  it  impossible  to  remedy  their 
own  inconvenience,  both  officers  and  men  were  com 
pelled  to  make  the  best  of  their  unfortunate  dilemma. 

The  companies  that  were  quartered  in  the  hold 
suffered  very  much  with  the  fetid  air  and  heat  inci 
dent  to  an  overcrowded  vessel.  Being  below  water 
mark,  there  was  no  ventilation  o,-ly  by  the  very  nar 
row  stairway  leading  to  the  deck,  which  was  always 
crowded  bv  those  seeking  egress  to  get  a  little  fresh 
air,  both  day  and  night.  The  gloom  on  the  stairway 
and  in  the  hold  rivalled  the  Egyptian  darkness,  and 
a  short  piece  of  candle  that  would  be  lit  momentarily 
for  some  obvious  reason,  would  only  serve  to  show 
"how  thick  the  darkness"  was. 

Whenever  the  weather  was  pleasant  the  upper 
decks  were  always  crowded  with  the  men.  It  af 
forded  a  great  relief  to  them  from  their  imprisonment 
below  in  stormy  weather;  but  there  being  so  much 
tempestuous  weather  at  that  season  of  the  year  be 
tween  Annapolis  and  Hatteras  Inlet,  this  pleasure 
was  frequently  denied  them. 

•  Late  in  the  afternoon  of  the  10th  of  January  the 
regiment  arrived  at  Fortress  Monroe,  and  as  the 
"Cossack"  passed  the  man-of-war  "  Minnesota,"  the 
51st  was  greeted  with  loud  cheers  from  the  officers 
and  the  gallant  tars  belonging  to  that  noble  vessel. 
An  extract  from  a  private  letter  describes,  in  the  fol 
lowing  words,  the  scene  exactly  : 


48        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIKST   REGIMENT 

"All  along  the  beach  for  miles  we  could  see  the 
people  running,  some  on  foot,  some  on  horseback,  as 
if  they  (rebels)  got  alarmed  at  seeing  so  many  thou 
sand  soldiers  and  so  many  vessels  of  war  around  the 
fortress.  It  looks  very  warrish  indeed.  Everything 
that  comes  to  the  Fortress  has  to  hoist  its  colors  be 
fore  it  can  pass.  Hundreds  of  vessels  are  riding  at 
anchor  here,  and  I  should  judge  that  not  less  than 
seventy-five  thousand  officers,  soldiers,  and  marines 
cheered  us  as  we  passed  in  to  our  anchorage.  The 
cheering  and  welcoming  by  the  regular  men-of- wars- 
men  was  uniform  and  full  of  discipline.  The  men 
got  high  up  in  the  rigging,  appearing  more  like 
flies  sticking  fast  to  fly-paper  than  human  beings. 
They  hung  to  the  rigging  until  we  got  directly 
'  broadside  '  with  her,  when  they  gave  us  three  rousing 
cheers,  and  as  soon  as  these  died  away,  they  gave  us 
a  single  cheer  more,  and  then  came  down  from  the 
rigging.  Their  band  played  the  'Star  Spangled 
Banner.'  We  then  passed  on  to  the  next  man-of-war, 
the  ill-fated  Cumberland,  when  the  same  formula  was 
gone  through  with,  and  so  on  until  we  dropped  an 
chor.  Then,  as  if  preconcerted,  all  the  bands  struck 
up  '  Home  !  Sweet  Home  !  '  " 

Thus  is  the  reception  of  the  51st  truthfully  de 
picted  in  the  above  extract,  on  the  arrival  of  the 
regiment  at  the  Fortress.  I  say  the  51st,  for  the 
"Cossack"  had  lost  sight  of  the  entire  fleet  long 
before  she  got  near  the  fort,  excepting  the  two 
schooners,  "Scout"  and  "Recruit,"  that  were  in  the 
"  Cossack's  "  tow. 

The  Cossack  on  her  arrival  at  the  Fortress  dropped 
the  line  of  the  two  vessels  in  tow,  and  anchored  off 
the  Rip-Raps,  directly  in  front  of  the  rebel  batteries, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       49 

on  "  Sewall's  Point ''  Va.,  but  not  near  enough  for 
the  "F.  F.  Y.'s"  to  pay  their  compliments  to  her. 
While  lying  at  anchor  off  the  Eip-Eaps,  on  Saturday, 
January  llth,  1862,  a  shot  was  fired  from  the  Sawyer 
gun  mounted  on  the  Eip-Eaps,  at  the  "  Chivalry  "  on 
Sewall's  Point,  which,  to  many,  aye,  very  many  too, 
was  the  first  shot  heard  in  the  war  by  them.  And 
although  a  large  number  had  begun  to  despond  from 
the  privations  already  suffered,  and  others  from 
being  so  far  from  their  homes  for  the  first  time  in 
their  lives,  leaving  friends,  kindred,  homes,  all,  so 
far  behind,  yet  that  one  shot  awakened  the  most 
lively  patriotism  ever  evinced  on  any  occasion. 
Their  grievances  were  all  forgotten  in  the  twinkling 
of  a  star,  and  all,  aye,  all !  were  anxious,  not  only  to 
see  a  fight,  but  wild  in  their  language  and  actions  to 
participate  in  one;  for  while  remaining  in  Camps 
Curtin  at  Harrisburg  and  Union  at  Annapolis,  long 
and  loud  were  the  complaints  made,  that  the  war 
would  be  over  before  the  regiment  would  get  "  a 
show,"  as  they  called  it.  But,  alas!  how  many 
"  shows  "  have  they  had  ?  Immediately  on  the  dis 
charge  of  the  Sawyer  gun,  the  rebels  threw  a  shell  at 
the  Eip-Eaps,  but  it  exploded  when  about  two-thirds 
of  the  way,  and  the  pieces  fell  harmlessly  in  the 
water  below.  The  balance  of  the  day  was  occupied 
by  the  contending  forces  with  a  brisk  cannonading, 
though  much  fiercer  on  the  part  of  the  rebels. 

Both  parties  at  noon  met  in  Hampton  Eoads  with 
a  flag  of  truce,  another  interesting  sight  to  the  un 
initiated. 

When  night  began  to  spread  her  sable  wings  over 
all  nature,  the  events  of  the  day  were  brought  to  a 
close,  and  a  highly  animated  discussion  took  place 


50        HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

among  men  who  were  active  participants  in  a  far 
more  exciting  scene  in  less  than  one  month  after. 

At  9  o'clock  at  night  of  the  llth  of  January,  the 
"  Cossack  "  again  weighed  anchor  and  stood  out  to 
sea,  to  buffet  the  waves  on  the  broad  bosom  of  the 
Atlantic.  The  two  schooners  were  again  taken  in 
tow,  but  on  reaching  the  ocean,  about  two  o'clock 
on  Sunday  morning,  the  12th,  the  tow-line  was 
dropped  and  each  vessel  had  to  take  care  of  itself. 
At  daylight  the  fleet  was  nowhere  to  be  seen.  The 
North  Carolina  shore  was  in  sight,  but  very  distant. 
About  7  o'clock  A.  M.  the  wind  began  to  rise  and 
"blew  a  hurricane,"  at  noon  it  had  died  away  to 
some  extent ;  but  the  sea  was  rolling  mountains  high, 
and  right  nobly  did  the  brave  old  steamer  ride  them, 
more  like  a  thing  of  life  and  reason,  than  a  huge 
mass  of  inanimation.  The  heavy  seas  would  strike  as 
if  determined  to  shiver  her  to  atoms,  but  she  battled 
with  the  surges  as  if  fighting  for  her  very  existence, 
and  as  the  mighty  waves  would  strike  the  ponder 
ous  sides  of  the  vessel  as  if  to  break  her  to  pieces, 
she  would  glide  over  them  as  it  were,  mocking  their 
efforts  to  crush  her.  She  rolled  and  plunged  through 
it  all,  with  safety  to  herself  and  her  precious  freight 
of  brave  and  daring  hearts.  But  who  can  give  a  full 
description  of  the  "  casting  up  of  accounts  "  by  that 
freight?  The  rolling  and  plunging  of  the  steamer 
caused  sea  sickness  to  nearly  every  one  on  board. 
There  was  no  sympathetic  heart  to  beat  in  unison  with 
the  invalid,  no  fair  and  gentle  hand  to  assist  the  head, 
while  the  stomach  was  undergoing  its  rigorous  com 
motions.  No  kindly  voice  to  echo  "New  York," as 
the  poor  victims  of  Neptune's  rule  lay  extended  on 
deck  on  their  stomachs,  like  a  spread  eagle,  caring 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       51 

very  little  whether  "  school  kept  or  not."  It  was 
somewhat  amusing  to  witness  the  invalids  while 
undergoing  their  performance;  there  they  lay,  some 
on  the  hurricane  deck,  with  their  heads  projecting 
over  the  ship's  sides,  "feeding  the  fishes;"  some  in 
their  bunks  below,  not  able  to  help  themselves  in  the 
least,  would  cascade  over  everything  about  them ; 
while  those  who  were  more  fortunate,  so  far,  stood 
laughing  at  the  sick  comrades  in  their  wretched 
spasms;  in  a  few  moments  longer  the  "Mockers" 
themselves  would  be  down  on  all  fours  echoing 
"New  York"  to  the  originals.  Sea  sickness  is  a  de 
termined  and  relentless  foe.  At  first  only  a  few 
were  seized  with  it,  but  as  the  waves  increased  in 
size,  making  the  vessels  at  times  nearly  perpen 
dicular  in  their  plungings,  the  number  of  invalids 
increased,  until  all  or  nearly  all,  were  down  on  their 
stomachs  emptying  their  contents  into  old  ocean  and 
other  places.  The  pale  face,  the  sunken  eye,  the 
dishevelled  hair,  all  bespoke  the  trying  ordeal  that 
nearly  all  had  had,  or  were  passing  through.  The 
motion  of  the  vessels  reminded  a  person  of  being 
seated  on  a  very  high  swing  and  moving  to  and  fro 
with  great  rapidity.  Thus  events  passed  on  until 
5  o'clock  P.  M.,  of  the  12th,  when  the  "  Cossack " 
reached  ITatteras  Inlet,  North  Carolina.  But  where 
were  the  Scout  and  the  Eecruit  ?  neither  of  them  had 
been  seen  since  the  night  before,  when  the  tow-line 
had  been  "  cast  off'."  Fears  for  the  safety  of  those 
on  board,  began  to  take  possession  of  those  on  the 
Cossack;  but  at  this  juncture  the  imminent  peril 
that  she  was  in,  made  those  on  her  begin  to  think  of 
their  own  safety,  and  as  self-preservation  seemed  to 


52        HISTORY    OF    THK    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

be  the  first  law  of  nature  just  at  that  time,  the  Scout 
and  the  Recruit  were  left  to  look  out  for  themselves. 

On  arriving  at  Hatteras  Inlet,  on  account  of  the 
heavy-running  sea,  very  few  vessels  of  the  fleet 
could  run  in.  The  Cossack  cruised  off  the  Inlet  till 
nearly  sundown,  but  was  unable  to  enter  on  account 
of  the  imminent  risk  attached  to  such  an  undertaking, 
especially  when  the  waves  were  rolling  frightfully 
high.  The  entrance  to  Parnlico  Sound  being  very 
narrow  and  shallow,  the  bed  of  the  channel  con 
tinually  shifting,  antl  the  quicksands  constantly 
changing  their  location  under  the  heavy  sea,  the 
steamer  was  forced  to  stand  off  the  Inlet  and  run 
run  out  to  sea  again — battling  with  the  furies  of  the 
ocean  till  sunrise  next  morning,  when  the  Cossack 
found  herself  over  forty-five  miles  from  the  Inlet, 
beating  northwest.  She  then  "  about  face  "  and  ran 
for  the  Inlet  again,  arriving  there  at  10  A.  M.  the 
13th  of  January. 

The  Scout  did  not  find  the  Inlet  for  several  days. 
Passing  it  on  Sunday,  the  12th,  she  beat  down  the 
coast  of  the  Carolinas,  and  was  very  near  being  cap 
tured,  having  run  within  sight  of  land,  and  mistaking 
it  for  Hatteras,  she  ran  close  into  shore,  almost  under 
the  guns  of  a  large  rebel  fort ;  but  luckily  for  her 
and  the  four  companies  aboard,  she  made  her  es 
cape  and  arrived  at  the  Inlet  on  the  18th  of  the 
month,  after  suffering  terribly  from  thirst,  not  being 
able  to  obtain  fresh  water.  They  were  obliged  to  drink 
vinegar  to  allay  their  thirst — drinking  about  two 
barrels  and  a  half  in  less  than  three  days.  The 
rations  also  became  short,  but  they  managed  to  eke 
them  out  by  eating  raw  pork  during  four  days, 
until  they  could  get  a  fresh  supply. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  53 

The  Cossack,  on  arriving  at  the  Inlet,  found  a  por 
tion  of  the  fleet  had  already  entered  in  safety.  The 
sea,  still  very  high,  rendered  the  passing  in  a  haz 
ardous  undertaking  for  any  vessel,  with  or  without 
a  pilot.  On  nearing  the  Inlet,  she  signalled  for  a 
pilot,  and  when  within  a  mile  of  the  entrance  the 
tug-boat  "  Pilot  Boy  "  answered  the  signal  and  im 
mediately  came  out.  Being  "hailed,"  the  Cossack 
answered,  "  we  want  a  pilot  to  take  us  into  the  Inlet." 
The  reply  was,  "  It  is  impossible  to  get  in  through 
such  a  heavy  sea  ;  the  danger  of  going  to  pieces  is 
inevitable."  J.ust  then  the  splendid  and  commodious 
steamer  "  City  of  New  York  "  attempted  to  run  in, 
but  the  rough  sea,  handling  her  as  if  she  was  a  mere 
egg-shell,  threw  her  upon  the  beach,  and  in  less  than 
twenty  minutes  that  mammoth  steamer  was  lashed 
to  pieces  by  the  angry  breakers.  The  pilot  referred 
Capt.  Bennett,  of  the  Cossack,  to  the  present  fate 
of  the  "  City  of  New  York,"  and  advised  him  to 
"  stand  out  to  sea  again  "  until  it  became  more  calm. 
But  Capt.  Bennett  was  not  to  be  daunted  by  the 
fate  of  the  wrecked  steamer  ;  immediately  putting  on 
a  full  head  of  steam,  determining  to  go  in  or  perish  in 
the  attempt,  and  the  51st's  officers  and  men  having 
backed  "  him  up  "  in  his  determination,  he  ordered 
the  "  Pilot  Boy"  to  run  in  ahead  of  the  steamer.  The 
Cossack  followed,  and  although  her  bottom  dragged 
on  the  shoal  upwards  of  two  hundred  yards,  with 
every  timber  creaking  and  groaning  under  the  im 
mense  pressure  from  the  headway  attained,  she  suc 
ceeded  in  getting  safely  inside  of  the  breakers  with 
out  any  damage  incurred  to  her  or  the  cargo.  The 
many  palpitating  hearts  overflowed  with  joy  on 
arriving  in  a  haven  of  safety,  at  least  of  apparent 


54        HISTOEY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIEST   EEGIMENT 

safety.  Now,  that  the  companies  B,  D;  E,  G,  H  and 
I  were  in  a  fair  kind  of  harbor,  great  anxiety 
sprang  up  as  to  the  fate  of  the  schooner  Scout  with 
the  remaining  four  companies,  A  C,  F  and  K. 
Their  probable  fate  had  been  discussed  for  several 
days  after  the  Cossack  entered  the  Sound,  and  it 
was  generally  believed  that  they  had  found  a  liquid 
grave  in  the  waters  of  the  Atlantic,  but  on  the  18th 
of  January,  about  9  A.  M.,  the  schooner  hove  in 
sight  and  ran  within  the  Inlet,  anchoring  near  the 
Cossack.  With  eagerness,  Col.  Hartranft  and  Lieut. 
Col.  Bell  met  and  greeted  each  other  by  a  cordial 
shaking  of  hands,  mingling  their  joys  together  at 
the  happy  result  of  finding  each  other  alive,  as  well 
as  their  respective  commands. 


CHAPTEK   III. 

Capt.  Bennett — More  storms  and  wrecks — The  Cossack  in 
danger — Loss  of  the  Louisiana — Veiling  of  lights— Scarcity 
of  water  and  rations — Using  vinegar — Heroism  of  the  Sailors 
in  procuring  water — Gratitude  of  the  Soldiers  to  the  Tars — 
Preparations  for  landing — Unloading  horses. 

CAPT.  BENNETT  saved  a  large  portion  of  the 
crew  of  the  ill-fated  steamer,  City  of  New  York, 
at  the  imminent  risk  of  losing  his  own  valuable  life. 
He  was  a  brave,  daring  man,  never  allowing  any 
thing  earthly  to  thwart  him  when  it  was  his  duty  to 
perform  a  humane  act.  After  rescuing  many  of  the 
wrecked  crew,  he  placed  them  on  board  of  his  own 
steamer,  where  they  received  every  attention  and 
kindness  from  the  officers  and  men  of  the  51st. 

On  the  14th  another  storm  arose;  the  sea  again 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.        55 

running  tremendously  high,  the  rain  corning  down  in 
torrents,  the  gale  causing  the  vessels  of  the  fleet  to 
drag  their  anchors  and  colliding  or  driving  them 
ashore.  The  Cossack  was  driven  aground;  when 
the  keel  struck,  it  was  feared  that  she  would  cer 
tainly  go  to  pieces,  for  the  timbers  creaked  and 
cracked  as  if  her  whole  bottom  had  been  crushed  in  ; 
but  such  was  not  the  case,  and  when  it  became  gen 
erally  known  in  the  regiment  that  she  was  still  safe, 
unlimited  confidence  was  reposed  in  her  staunchness. 

The  next  day  the  storm  somewhat  subsided ;  but 
the  sea  still  running  high,  the  colonel  and  surgeon 
of  the  39th  New  Jersey,  with  two  privates  of  another 
regiment,  took  a  surf  boat,  intending  to  visit  the 
wreck  of  the  City  of  New  York,  but  a  heavy  sea 
struck  the  boat  and  capsized  it,  and  all  four  souls 
were  ushered  into  eternity  by  drowning.  The 
bodies  of  the  colonel  and  surgeon  were  recovered 
and  sent  home  for  burial. 

At  the  same  time,  a  gun-boat  sunk  off  Fort  Clark; 
also  a  schooner  laden  with  army  stores  was  sunk. 
And,  to  add  still  more  to  the  destruction,  the  Cossack 
lent  a  little  to  complete  the  chapter  of  accidents  on 
that  day.  A  schooner  laden  with  lumber  ran  into  her, 
carried  away  a  number  of  state-rooms,  and  tore  up 
the  upper-deck  on  the  whole  of  one  side  of  the 
"ladies'  saloon."  The  schooner's  bowsprit  had  cut 
into  the  timbers  and  rigging  of  the  Cossack,  like  the 
nose  of  a  gigantic  hog  rooting  heedless  of  the  dam 
age  being  done.  Fears  were  entertained  that  the 
schooner  might  saw  the  Cossack  in  two — to  the 
water's  edge.  Every  man  of  the  51st  on  the  Cossack 
felt  it  his  duty  to  assist  to  work  the  stubborn  monster 
away  from  the  steamer;  and  right  lustily  did  they 


56        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

work,  but  for  a  long  time  in  vain,  for  the  rough 
sea  kept  driving  the  two  vessels  together,  baffling  all 
human  efforts  to  part  them.  Axes  were  brought  to 
bear  on  the  rigging  of  both  vessels,  and  on  the  bow 
sprit  of  the  schooner,  which  was  cut  away  close  to 
her  bow  and  released  the  Cossack  from  the  grasp  of 
her  dangerous  ally. 

At  4.20  A.  M.,  of  this  unlucky  day,  James  Conway, 
a  member  of  Company  D,  died.  He  was  buried  in 
the  afternoon,  on  shore,  near  Fort  Clark,  at  Hatteras. 

On  the  next  day  several  more  vessels  were  wrecked 
or  damaged  to  a  considerable  extent.  Among  the 
latter  was  a  first-class  steamboat,  the  "  Louisiana." 
She  got  aground,  parted  her  keel  and  lay  there 
with  her  back  broken,  a  useless  mass  of  wood  and 
iron.  The  men  began  to  despair  of  the  success  of 
the  expedition.  Everything  appeared  to  be  going 
the  wrong  way  ;  men  losing  their  lives  by  drowning ; 
the  fleet  getting  reduced  daily  by  disaster ;  the  regu 
lar  being  "  aground  "  of  a  half  a  dozen  vessels  at  a 
time ;  water  and  rations  scarce ;  quarters  uncomfort 
able  ;  and  last,  though  not  least,  very  irregular 
mails.  The  very  acme  at  this  time  of  the  men's 
existence  was  to  hear  the  cry  "  Mail  1"  "  Mail !"  An 
extract  from  a  private  letter  written  at  that  time  by 
a  private  in  the  olst,  gives  a  correct  idea  of  the 
above  accounts,  it  says :  "  We  have  just  been  aground, 
but  are  now  afloat  again.  The  Cossack  is  very  much 
strained  all  through.  We  are  getting  up  steam  to 
run  about  a  mile  further  up  the  sound  hoping  to 
find  deeper  water.  I  can  stand  on  our  deck  and 
count  nine  wrecked  vessels  within  sight.  I  think  I 
will  quit  giving  you  any  more  accounts  of  our  end 
less  troubles ;  for  as  soon  as  one  vessel  is  relieved, 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  57 

another  and  sometimes  two  will  need  assistance, 
and  as  it  is  nothing  but  a  repetition  of  disasters, 
there  is  no  use  of  writing  anything  more  about  them. 
I  am  sick  of  looking  at  those  wrecked  hulks.  All 
I  wish  is  that  I  was  at  home,  I  would  not  go  a  sol 
diering  again  in  a  fleet.  I  like  it  on  land  and  would 
willingly  go  again,  but  you  could  not  coax  me  to  get 
into  another  scrape  like  this.  And  I  don't  believe 
there  is  one  in  a  thousand  but  that  wishes  the  same 
as  I  do.  There  is  no  hilarity  on  board,  now,  no 
laughing  and  singing,  '  I  wish  I  was  in  Dixey ;'  they 
all  appear  to  have  enough  of  Dixey.  Our  officers 
are  all  desponding,  and  the  men  watch  every  look  and 
movement  they  happen  to  give  or  make.  I  have  no 
chance  of  knowing  to  any  extent  the  sufferings  on 
the  other  vessels,  but  I  see  our  own,  and  God  knows 
they  are  enough.  If  any  of  them  are  undergoing 
what  might  be  compared  to  the  interest  on  ours,  I  pity 
them.  There  is  no  telling  when  we  shall  get  away 
from  here,  and  if  we  knew,  it  wouldn't  do  us  any 
good,  for  we  have  no  rations,  water  or  coal  on  board, 
and  what  little  '  grub '  the  garrison  in  Fort  Clark 
has,  would  not  last  us  more  than  one  day.  The 
captain  of  this  ship  intends  going  to-day  to  see  what 
is  to  be  done  for  us.  If  anything  can  be  done,  he  is 
the  one  that  will  do  it,  for  a  more  resolute,  deter 
mined  officer  could  not  be  found  in  the  navy." 

Thus  are  the  trials  and  disappointments  of  the 
regiment  fully  related,  in  addition  to  the  anxiety 
about  not  getting  "mails."  It  must  be  confessed 
that  the  irregularity  of  the  mail  was  to  be  deplored ; 
but,  under  the  circumstances,  no  better  facilities 
offered  for  conveying  it  than  the  casual  stopping  of 
the  Port  Koyal  mail  steamers  at  the  Inlet,  when  out 


58        HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

of  coal  or  other  necessaries.  The  Port  Koyal,  S. 
C.;  mail  arrived  and  departed  once  in  about  two 
weeks,  so  the  regiment  received  a  mail  at  least 
that  often. 

During  those  exciting  times,  the  health  of  the 
regiment  was  extremely  good.  The  weather  in  the 
South,  at  this  period  of  the  year,  (January,)  is  very 
much  like  the  warm,  murky,  rainy  weather  up 
North  in  the  spring.  On  shipboard  the  changes  of 
the  atmosphere  were  more  sensibly  felt,  for  there  the 
high  winds,  storms,  &c.,  had  full  play.  It  is  to  be 
wondered  how  the  men  retained  so  good  health  on 
such  scanty  rations,  scarcity  of  water,  under  intense 
excitement,  continuing  both  day  and  night,  with  the 
weather  at  one  hour  warm  enough  to  remain  on 
deck  in  their  shirt  sleeves,  and  in  the  next  to  feel 
comfortable  with  a  blouse  and  two  coats  on. 

As  long  as  the  vessel  would  float,  things  assumed 
a  cheerful  aspect,  but  she  was  nearly  as  much  of  the 
time  aground  as  afloat ;  a  dozen  times  a  day  to  be 
aground  was  not  uncommon. 

On  the  16th  of  January,  the  Cossack  parted  her 
anchor-chain,  and  thereby  lost  her  moorings  ;  conse 
quently  she  could  only  be  kept  stationary  after  that 
event  by  being  aground,  but  that  was  a  risky  busi 
ness,  for  then  her  huge 'timbers  creaked  and  groaned 
as  if  she  could  not  hold  together  another  moment. 
The  cause  of  the  -Cossack  being  aground  so  often 
can  only  be  attributed  to  the  parties  from  whom  the 
Government  obtained  her,  as  she  drew  thirty  inches 
more  water  than  her  owners  had  stated  she  did. 

When  evening  came  all  the  vessels  had  to  ex 
tinguish  their  lights,  or  mask  their  windows  and 
doors  to  prevent  the  rays  being  seen  outside  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       59 

vessels.  The  rebels  were  running  down  from  Koan- 
oke  Island  on  small  steamers,  spying  out  for  their 
benefit  whatever  could  be  seen.  The  nights  being 
dark  and  the  Sound  very  rough,  with  the  vessels 
darkened,  another  schooner  broke  loose  from  her 
moorings,  and  ran  into  the  Cossack,  smashing  things 
in  general ;  but  in  the  course  of  a  couple  of  hours 
she  was  released  from  her  "  friendly  antagonist." 

On  the  16th  of  January,  the  51st  might  reasonably 
date  the  true  commencement  of  its  real  troubles — 
beginning  with  no  water  on  the  vessel,  and  ending 
with  no  rations  in  the  haversack,  or  in  fact  any 
where  about.  The  regiment  began  to  experience 
what  soldiering  is  in  reality.  It  had  always  been 
accustomed  to  get  its  coffee  between  six  and  ten 
o'clock  A.  M.,  but  this  time  it  was  doomed  to  get 
none  at  all,  for  there  was  no  water,  with  which  to 
make  it.  All  who  have  been  in  actual  service  will 
say  with  the  writer  that  a  cup  of  coffee  was,  under 
all  circumstances,  full  one-half  of  their  living; 
whether  on  the  march  or  in  camp,  on  the  battle-field 
or  picket  line,  coffee,  like  sleep,  was  the  great  re 
storer  of  tired  nature. 

Noon  came,  still  no  water  to  be  had  for  drinking 
or  coffee.  Almost  fabulous  prices  were  given  to  the 
ship's  steward  for  a  half  gill,  a  gill  or  half  pint  of 
coffee,  such  quantity  as  he  thought  he  could  spare 
from  the  crew's  mess.  The  writer  of  this  was  for 
tunate  enough  to  obtain  a  tin  cup  nearly  half  full, 
and  was  instantly  offered  two  dollars  for  only  one- 
half  of  that  portion.  Late  in  the  afternoon  the  first 
mate  and  several  seamen  took  two  water-casks  and 
went,  heaven  knows  where,  after  water,  and  returned 


60        HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

by  nine  o'clock  at  night  with  only  sufficient  to  make 
a  little  coffee,  which  was  issued  about  midnight. 

The  17th  and  18th  were  two  pleasant  days,  and 
the  boats,  with  crews,  had  to  be  employed  in  some 
extra  duty,  preparatory  to  the  sailing  of  the  fleet  up 
the  Sound ;  consequently  but  a  very  limited  amount 
of  water  and  provisions  was  got  on  board ;  in  fact, 
no  more  than  what  was  barely  sufficient  for  the  im 
mediate  wants  of  the  regiment  for  the  time  being. 
It  was  intended  to  begin  in  a  day  or  two  to  stow 
away  a  full  supply  for  the  remainder  of  the  voyage, 
but  u  man  proposes,  and  God  disposes."  The  next 
day  opened  with  a  violent  storm,  driving  nearly 
every  vessel  of  the  fleet  aground.  The  regiment 
did  not  only  suffer  for  water,  but  also  for  food; 
there  was  none  of  either  on  board,  and,  being 
aground,  it  was  necessary  to  endeavor  to  get  the 
vessel  afloat  for  the  safety  of  her  living  cargo.  The 
rain  which  fell  in  torrents  at  one  time  furnished  the 
"  boys  "  with  a  kind  of  water.  They  held  their  can 
teens  or  cups  under  every  available  place  to  catch 
the  rain  that  ran  off'  the  decks.  It  must  be  confessed 
that  it  was  not  very  pure,  being  composed  of  the 
washings  of  the  decks,  tobacco  quids,  saliva,  and 
other  uninviting  ingredients  not  necessary  to  men 
tion  here,  but  all  went  towards  making  up  a  cup  or 
a  canteenful  of  the  aquatic  fluid. 

On  the  20th,  an  attempt  was  made  to  cross  the  bar, 
but  with  no  success,  having  grounded  again  during 
a  heavy  sea.  The  old  saying  that  "it's  an  ill  wind 
that  blows  nobody  good,"  was  verified  in  this  case, 
for  by  our  getting  aground,  and  also  many  others  of 
the  fleet,  the  tug-boats  were  kept  busy  in  relieving 
the  distresses  of  vessels  in  a  worse  situation  than 


4     OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       61 

the  Scout  and  Cossack;  consequently  our  Quarter 
master  took  advantage  of  the  situation  and  also  of 
the  boats,  and  started  off'  to  the  store-ship  and  suc 
ceeded  in  getting  a  small  supply  of  rations. 

The  Cossack  remaining  aground  began  to  settle  on 
the  bottom,  for  the  high  wind  had  driven  the  tide 
out  to  sea.  So  deeply  had  she  become  imbedded  in 
mud  that  she  remained  thus  till  late  in  the  afternoon 
of  the  next  day,  when  the  wind  shifted  and  the  tide 
came  in  again  and  floated  her  clear  of  the  bottom. 
Another  attempt  was  made  next  day  to  get  her  over 
the  bar,  but  running  into  another  vessel,  she 

7  o  / 

grounded  again,  and  this  time  she  went  high  and 
dry. 

Capt.  Bennett  and  Col.  Hartranft  did  all  that  lay 
in  their  power  to  get  her  afloat  once  more,  but  with 
out  success,  and  in  the  evening  the  regiment  was 
transferred  to  the  stern-wheel  steamer  "  Union," 
(familiarly  known  throughout  the  fleet  as  the 
"  Wheelbarrow,")  for  the  purpose  of  lightening  the 
Cossack,  that  she  might  be  got  over  the  bar.  Some 
time  in  the  night,  after  the  troops  had  all  disem 
barked  from  her,  four  tugs  drew  her  over  the  bar 
into  Pamlico  Sound. 

Soon  after  getting  over  the  bar,  George  Schaffer, 
of  Co.  D,  died.  His  body  was  put  into  a  rude 
coffin  and  awaited  such  times  as  it  could  be  con 
veyed  to  the  shore  for  interment.  On  the  21st  the 
51st  fasted  the  entire  day — not  an  enlisted  man  had 
had  a  mouthful  of  food  or  water  since  the  day 
before,  and  the  sufferings  from  thirst  becoming  in 
tense,  a  barrel  of  vinegar  was  tapped,  the  whole  of 
which  was  swallowed  in  less  than  two  hours.  The 
second  mate,  at  the  risk  of  his  life,  with  five  seamen, 


62        HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIKST    KEGIMENT 

took  a  boat  at  ten  o'clock  at  night  and  went  after 
water.  The  sea,  or  rather  the  sound,  was  running 
tremendously  high  ;  every  one  on  board  gazed  on  the 
adventurous  party  with  feelings  mingled  with  hope 
and  fear  (hope,  that  water  might  be  obtained,  fear, 
that  the  brave  hearts  going  after  it  would  not  return 
again)  as  the  frail  craft  was  shoved  away  from  the 
steamer's  side,  fully  believing  they  would  find  a 
watery  grave  in  the  "troubled  waters."  At  times 
the  little  party  would  disappear  in  the  ''trough"  of 
the  sea,  behind  a  huge  wave,  and  be  lost  to  the 
vision  of  the  anxious  gazers  for  some  minutes.  As 
the  night  was  dark,  they  could  not  be  discerned  at 
any  great  distance,  but  the  splashing  of  the  oars 
could  be  distinctly  heard,  and  by  that  it  was  known 
their  frail  craft  still  floated.  With  what  breathless 
anxiety  did  that  thirst-suffering  regiment  listen  and 
wait  for  their  return  !  Many  lives  seemed  to  depend 
on  the  success  of  that  venturesome  party — magnani 
mous  souls ! — who  were  risking  their  lives  to  relieve 
the  sufferings  of  their  fellow  men.  Capt.  Bennett 
gave  his  consent  to  their  going,  although  he  feared 
no  boat  could  live  in  such  a  sea  five  minutes,  yet  by 
accident  they  might  succeed  in  returning.  And, 
thanks  to  the  Giver  of  all  good,  they  did,  with 
enough  water  to  give  nearly  a  pint  to  each  man  on 
board. 

The  gratitude  of  the  soldiers  developed  itself  by 
presenting  the  second  mate  and  each  of  the  five  sea 
men  with  a  splendid  bowie  knife,  at  that  time  the 
only  testimonials  they  had  in  their  power  to  bestow. 

Now  that  they  had  the  water,  where  or  how  were 
they  to  obtain  food  ?  none,  however,  was  got  that 
night.  The  next  day  (the  24th)  another  of  those 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       63 

violent  thunder  storms  came  up,  which  prevented 
any  food  from  coming  on  board  that  day  till  late  in 
the  afternoon,  and  the  men  having  been  already  so 
long  without  food,  their  sufferings  were  beyond  de 
scription. 

The  letters  written  at  that  time  to  the  tl  loved  ones 
at  home"  only  conveyed  a  faint  idea  of  their  priva 
tions.  None  could  have  exaggerated,  had  they  tried, 
for  the  dreadful  picture  needed  no  coloring  to  make 
it  more  impressive. 

But  late  in  the  afternoon  both  water  and  rations, 
in  a  limited  quantity,  came  on  board ;  but  it  was 
obtained,  like  that  of  the  day  before,  at  the  risk  of 
the  lives  of  those  noble  sailors.  This  time  the  regi 
ment  presented  the  mate,  Mr.  Stroud,  with  the  best 
watch  that  was  in  the  possession  of  the  men  of  the 
51st,  as  a  token  of  their  appreciation  of  the  efforts 
of  the  sailors  to  procure  for  them  the  necessaries  of 
life.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the  25th  a  plentiful 
supply  of  both  rations  and  water  was  sent  on  board, 
and  the  spirits  of  the  men  were  raised  to  the  highest 
degree.  During  those  few  days  of  being  on  short 
rations  of  food  and  water,  which  were  only  a  por 
tion  of  their  trials,  the  steamer  got  aground  and 
stuck  extremely  tight.  The  tugs  made  fast  to  the 
Cossack  to  haul  her  off,,  but  it  was  all  in  vain,  for 
they  could  not  move  her  an  inch.  She  had  to  lie  in 
that  situation  all  night,  which  strained  her  very 
much,  arid  compelled  the  troops  on  board  to  remain 
up  nearly  or  quite  all  that  night — the  18th.  At 
daybreak  next  morning  two  large  tug  boats,  belong 
ing- to  Port  Royal,  hauled  up  alongside  of  the  Cos 
sack  and  took  off  all  the  men  and  arms,  and  then 
made  fast  to  the  grounded  steamer  and  hauled  her 


64:        HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

off  at  high  tide,  which  was  greatly  in  favor  of  the 
undertaking,  and  the  noble  Cossack  was  once  more 
afloat.  While  all  this  was  taking  place,  an  accident 
to  the  steamboat  on  which  the  51st  had  embarked 
came  very  near  proving  fatal  to  a  large  number  of 
the  soldiers.  As  the  boat  on  which  the  troops  were 
was  about  swinging  off  from  the  ship's  side,  it  ran 
into  the  hulk  of  the  "  Brant's  Island  Shoals  light 
boat,"  smashing  the  steamboat  like  dried  leaves. 
Several  of  the  soldiers  made  narrow  escapes  from 
being  precipitated  into  the  water.  Several  were 
slightly  wounded.  Some  lost  their  knapsacks  and 
muskets  overboard.  As  the  two  vessels  went  crash 
ing  into  each  other  a  number  of  the  men,  in  order 
to  save  themselves,  were  obliged  to  jump  on  board 
of  the  "light  boat"  and  were  unable  to  get  back 
again  before  the  steamboat  got  clear  of  the  wreck, 
consequently  they  had  to  remain  on  it  for  some 
time  before  their  situation  was  made  known  and  a 
boat  sent  to  their  rescue. 

During  this  time  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  the 
expedition  was  lying  idle — far  from  it.  Gen.  Burn- 
side  was  superintending  the  preparations  for  getting 
his  forces  ready  for  the  attack  on  Eoanoke  Island, 
and  trying  to  get  the  large  number  of  transports 
over  the  bar,  transferring  troops  from  one  vessel  to 
another,  loading  and  unloading  artillery  and  horses. 

Unloading  the  horses  was  a  novel  sight  and 
afforded  considerable  amusement  to  the  eye  wit 
nesses.  The  elegant,  large  steamer  George  Peabody 
had  between  two  and  three  hundred  horses  on  board, 
and  they  were  all  landed  safely  at  Hatteras  Inlet, 
although  the  mode  of  landing  them  seemed  a  little 
barbarous.  It  was  done  in  this  wise  :  The  Peabody 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       65 

anchored  in  very  deep  water,  within  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  of  Fort  Clark ;  a  very  strong  head  halter, 
with  a  good,  strong,  and  very  long  rope,  was  put  on 
each  horse.  Eight  men  were  in  a  row  boat,  six  of 
them  rowed,  one  steered,  and  one  stands  to  catch  the 
rope  when  thrown  to  him.  The  boat  is  rowed  up  to 
within  twenty-five  feet  of  the  ship's  side,  and  the  men 
on  the  steamer  throw  the  rope  to  the  men  in  the  boat. 
The  horse  is  then  led  to  the  gangway  on  deck,  which  is 
very  high  from  the  water,  and  when  almost  to  the 
very  edge  of  the  plank,  ten  or  twelve  men  give  him 
a  sudden  push  into  the  sea,  where  he  sinks  fifteen 
or  twenty  feet,  and  then  he  rises  to  the  surface  of 
the  water.  The  oarsmen  in  the  little  boat  pull  for 
shore,  the  horse  swimming  after  them;  when  once 
on  shore  he  is  turned  loose,  until  all  are  thus  dis 
posed  of. 

CHAPTER   IV. 

Over  the  bar — Rumors  of  compromise — Rebel  gunboats — Ad 
vance  of  the  Fleet  to  Roanoke  Island — Demand  for  Surren 
der — Its  rejection— Preparations  for  the  Attack. 

ON  the  evening  of  the  21st  of  January,  the  51st 
was  again  compelled  to  "  pack  up  "  and  go  on  board 
of  another  vessel,  taking  every  article  with  them 
they  possessed,  as  the  Cossack  was  to  be  taken  over 
the  Great  Bar,  and  everything  had  to  be  taken  off  to 
enable  her  to  go  over ;  even  the  water  in  her  tanks 
and  boilers  was  drawn  off  to  lighten  her  as  much  as 
possible.  All  the  vessels  of  deep  draught  had  to  be 
dealt  with  in  the  same  way,  in  order  to  get  them 
over.  After  all  had  got  over,  and  lay  at  anchor  close 

to  each  other,  they  looked  very  much  dilapidated 

4* 


66        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

from  the  extremely  rough  usage  received  in  the 
numberless  storms  they  had  been  subjected  to,  not 
one  but  what  sustained  more  or  less  damage;  there 
they  lay,  some  with  their  upper  decks  carried  away, 
some,  their  wheel-houses  staved  in,  others  with  their 
deck  cabins  knocked  off)  bows  stove,  bowsprits  gone, 
and  some  total  wrecks. 

On  the  22cl  of  January,  the  last  vessel  belonging 
to  the  fleet  entered  the  Inlet,  but  up  to  this  time  only 
a  few  had  been  successful  in  getting  on  the  desired 
side  of  the  bar.  One  hundred  and  fourteen  vessels 
floated,  at  this  date,  off  Fort  Clark,  between  the  inlet 
and  the  bar.  The  storms  still  prevailing  to  a  greater 
or  less  extent,  continally  retarded  the  progress  of  the 
expedition  very  much,  and  gave  the  rebels,  on 
Roanoke  Island,  ample-  time  to  strengthen  their  forti 
fications  and  make  the  contest  more  desperate  when 
it  should  come  on. 

A  rumor  had  gained  considerable  credence 
throughout  the  entire  fleet  that  the  troops  were  to 
be  sent  home  in  three  days  time,  as  the  rebels  wanted 
^o  compromise.  Many  were  the  curses  against  those 
who  were  supposed  would  favor  such  a  scheme- 
But  the  rumor  was  evidently  started  by  some  one 
for  the  sole  purpose  of  testing  the  patriotism  of  those 
who  only  a  few  days  before  were  clamorous  for 
food  and  water.  Be  that  as  it  may,  their  patriotism 
had  not  oozed  out  through  such  a  causeless  channel. 
It  was  too  deeply  seated,  had  too  firm  a  hold,  and 
sprang  from  motives  too  pure  and  honest  to  die  out 
for  the  want  of  a  few  mouth fuls  of  food  and  water. 
The  three  days  passed,  aye  !  three  years  passed  !  and  • 
still  found  the  noble  Burnside  corps  contending  with 
the  uncompromising  rebels ! 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       67 

The  appearance  of  things  by  the  26th  indicated 
an  early  onward  movement ;  everything  was  bustle 
and  hurry;  vessels  with  provisions  and  water  were 
unloading  their  enormous  freights  on  the  vessels 
containing  troops.  Gunboats  were  practising  target 
firing,  also  the  various  regiments  of  infantry.  The 
gunboats  were  nearly  all  over  the  bar,  but  the  trans 
ports  were  making  but  poor  headway. 

On  the  26th  the  steamers  Admiral  and  George 
Pe^abody  succeeded,  after  many  attempts,  in  crossing 
the  bar,  and  after  their  success  in  accomplishing  the 
feat,  the  transports  all  made  efforts  for  the  same  ob 
ject,  and  a  large  number  of  them  succeeded,  adding 
greatly  to  the  size  of  the  fleet  already  over,  and  the 
expectations  of  getting  into  a  battle  within  a  very 
few  days,  ran  high. 

The  weather  now  began  to  be  exceedingly  fine, 
and  everything  progressed  encouragingly.  The 
bosom  of  the  Sound  was  calm  and  placid  as  a  vast 
sheet  of  ice.  The  prospect  of  an  early  departure  from 
the  anchorage  and  rendezvous  produced  a  flow  of 
spirits  in  the  men  not  often  to  be  met  with  on  the  eve 
of  an  important  battle. 

On  the  28th,  the  mammoth  steamer  u  Eastern 
Queen"  got  over  the  bar,  making,  in  all  that  were  then 
over,  thirty-three  vessels  directly  belonging  to  the 
fleet.  Gen.  Burnside,  who  had  gone  to  Washington 
the  week  previous,  now  arrived.  His  benevolent 
face  was  seen  by  his  command,  as  he  passed  from  one 
vessel  to  another,  and  the  cheers  that  rent  the  air 
must  have  been  most  gratifying  to  his  brave,  heroic 
spirit.  The  concentration  of  so  large  a  fleet  within 
the  waters  of  the  Carolinas  began  to  alarm  the  rebels 
considerably.  During  the  night  of  the  27th,  a  rebel 


68        HISTORY    OF  THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

gunboat  bad  successfully  run  tbrougb  tbe  wbole  of 
the  fleet  without  detection.  A  rebel  schooner  used 
to  run  down  in  the  daytime  within  sight  of  the  fleet, 
to  spy  out  whatsoever  there  was  to  be  spied.  Our 
gunboats  always  gave  chase  to  her,  and  a  highly 
animated  race  would  be  the  result.  On  the  29th,  the 
total  number  of  vessels  over  the  bar  was  forty-one. 

The  four  companies  of  the  51st  that  had  been  on 
the  Scout,  were  now  transferred  from  that  vessel  to 
the  Cossack,  to  lighten  her  that  she  might  get  over. 
The  accession  of  those  four  companies  did  not  add 
any  more  comfort  to  the  already  over-crowded  decks 
and  hold  of  the  Cossack,  which  had  just  taken  in 
ninety  tons  of  coal.  They  remained  on  the  Cossack 
until  February  1st,  when  they  again  returned  to 
their  own  vessel.  Sixty-two  vessels  were  over  the 
bar  by  night  of  January  31st. 

The  steamer  ''Union,"  alias  '"'Wheelbarrow,"  ran 
into  the  Cossack  again,  but  did  no  serious  damage. 
After  getting  clear  of  the  collision,  the  Cossack  took 
in  four  hundred  barrels  of  manufactured  water.  This 
was  distilled  from  the  sea  water ;  it  did  very  well 
in  the  absence  of  better ;  being  insipid  to  the  taste, 
it  did  not  possess  the  virtue  to  allay  thirst ;  but 
there  was  no  other  fresh  water  to  be  had,  and  the 
fleet  making  hasty  preparations  for  its  departure, 
the  boys  concluded  that  in  a  few  days  they  would 
get  a  drink  of  good  water  on  the  island  after  they 
had  taken  it ! 

A  mail  arrived  on  the  31st  of  January,  bringing 
letters  and  papers  up  to  the  15th  of  the  same  month. 
It  had  been  nearly  or  quite  three  weeks  since  a 
regular  mail  had  come  in  before. 

Guard  duty  and  policing  was  as  regularly  per- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  69 

formed  as  if  the  regiment  had  been  on  shore  in  camp. 
An  attempt  had  been  made  to  drill  the  companies 
in  the  manual  of  arms  daily,  but  to  the  gratification 
of  the  boys,  it  was  found  impracticable.  As  they 
had  to  drill  on  the  hurricane  deck,  the  "order  arms  " 
made  such  a  racket  as  to  make  Capt.  Bennett  order 
Col.  Hartranft  to  desist  in  carrying  out  that  order, 
which  was  as  promptly  and  as  cheerfully  obeyed  as 
if  it  came  from  some  military  superior.  The  cause 
of  Capt.  Bennett's  objection  to  drilling  on  the  steamer 
was  that  the  noise  incident  to  "  order  arms,"  pre 
vented  the  ship's  crew  from  hearing  his  orders,  and 
therefore  the  "manual"  had  to  be  abolished,  much 
to  the  satisfaction  of  the  men. 

On  board  of  the  Cossack,  the  sutlers,  Messrs.  Hart 
ranft  and  Rodermcl,  supplied  the  wants  of  the  men 
occasionally,  who  were  fortunate  enough  to  have 
money,  at  nearly  fabulous  prices.  Cheese  was  sold 
by  the  lump  of  two  and  a  half  to  three  pounds  for 
$3,  while  at  home  the  best  was  selling  for  fifteen  cents 
per  Ib ;  raisins,  75  cents  per  Ib. ;  cigars,  (sixes,)  10 
cents  each  ;  peaches  put  up  in  bottles,  in  indifferently 
bad  whiskey,  $8  per  bottle.  A  little  "  spree"  could 
could  not  be  indulged  in  without  paying  dear  for  it. 
For  instance,  a  party  of  three  persons  were  bent  on 
a  jollification,  and  spent  §21  in  trying  to  get  up  a 
"good  feeling,"  but  had  to  give  it  up  in  disgust,  for 
want  of  funds,  and  were  no  nearer  attaining  their 
cherished  object  than  when  they  began. 

February  the  1st  saw  the  larger  portion  of  the 
fleet  over  the  bar,  and  extensive  preparations  were 
being  made  to  leave  the  Inlet,  and  proceed  to  the 
attack  on  the  island.  In  fact,  the  fleet  had  been 
deemed  ready  to  go  for  some  time,  if  the  weather  had 


70        HISTOEY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   KEGIMENT 

not  interfered  with  getting  the  entire  fleet  over  the 
bar.  Since  the  most  needed  vessels  were  over,  it 
was  determined  to  sail  as  soon  as  the  weather  would 
permit,  but  it  was  either  very  foggy  or  very  stormy. 
Sickness  now  began  to  lay  large  numbers  of  the 
men  up,  incident  to  an  overcrowded  ship,  and  for 
want  of  purer  air  and  better  prepared  food.  On  the 
4th,  everything  was  ready  in  detail  to  start  up  the 
Sound  the  next  day,  as  all  the  vessels  were  over  the 
bar  that  could  be  got  over.  At  9  o'clock  A.  M.,  on 
the  5th,  the  fleet  left  its  anchorage,  and  had  a  pleas 
ant  run  up  the  Sound  to  within  ten  or  twelve  miles 
of  Roanoke  Island,  where  it  arrived  at  dusk  of  the 
evening,  and  dropped  anchor  for  the  night,  during 
which  time  Corp.  George  Bowman,  of  Co.  D.,  died. 
Next  morning  (the  6th)  looked  very  dull,  gloomy, 
cloudy,  with  a  heavy  fog,  and  at  6  A.  M.  it  set  in  to 
rain.  At  8  A.  M.,  on  the  6th,  the  fleet  weighed  anchor 
again,  and  got  under  way,  preceded  by  the  gun 
boats.  The  whole  movement  now  was  made  with 
slow  running  and  with  much  caution.  The  gunboats 
feeling  every  foot  of  their  way  with  suspicion  of 
masked  batteries  on  either  shore,  which  was  only  a 
short  distance  from  the  vessels,  and  in  plain  sight  of 
the  more  prominent  forts  on  the  island.  It  was  also 
necessary  to  use  great  caution  in  nearing  the  island, 
as  the  Sound  was  filled  with  sunken  obstacles,  but  all 
were  passed  in  safety,  and  after  passing  the  "Croatan 
Light-house,"  the  fleet  emerged  into  "Croatan 
Sound." 

At  eleven  o'clock  A.  M.  the  gunboats  took  up  their 
position,  the  transports  in  their  rear,  but  near  enough 
to  be  useful  in  case  of  need.  At  this  juncture  a  flag 
of  truce  was  despatched  to  the  island  by  Gen.  Burn- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       71 

side  with  a  formal  demand  for  the  surrender  of  the 
island,  which  demand  was  as  formally  rejected  bv 
Col.  Jordan,  of  the  rebel  army.  The  remainder  of 
the  day  was  occupied  in  making  the  final  prepara 
tions  for  the  attack  on  the  coming  morrow.  Orders 
were  rapidly  passed  from  one  vessel  to  another.  The 
Signal  Corps  was  employed  continually  throughout 
the  day.  The  decks  of  gunboats  were  cleared  for 
action ;  the  brave  tars  were  eager  for  the  work  of 
death  to  commence  ;  orders  were  also  flying  rapidly 
among  the  transports,  and  every  preparation  to  en 
sure  the  safe  landing  of  the  troops  was  made.  The  ex 
citement  among  the  soldiers  became  intense  from 
their  eagerness  to  get  into  action.  At  the  approach 
of  night  all  the  orders  necessary  for  the  success  of 
the  enterprise  were  issued  and  promptly  complied 
with.  Each  officer  and  man  resolved  on  doing  his 
part  nobly,  that  the  great  chieftain,  Burnside,  whom 
they  all  loved  and,  revered,  should  be  successful  in 
this,  his  first  blow  with  his  expedition  at  the  rebellion. 
Orders  were  issued  to  all  the  troops,  that  on  landing 
they  were  to  "fall  in"  with  any  company  that  was 
the  most  convenient,  (this  order  was  highly  neces 
sary,  inasmuch  as  there  was  no  telling  the  precise 
locality  of  the  enemy  on  shore,  and  they  might  take 
advantage  of  the  bustle  and  excitement  incident  to 
landing  troops  in  a  swampy  country,)  providing 
anything  unusual  should  occur,  and  they  had  not 
the  time  to  join  their  respective  commands.  Knap 
sacks  and  all  cumbersome  luggage  were  to  be  left  on 
the  vessels.  At  dark  two  gunboats  were  sent  out 
on  picket,  and  to  reconnoitre,  but  found  everything 
quiet. 


72        HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIKST   REGIMENT 


CHAPTER   V. 

Bombardment  by  the  Fleet — Landing  of  the  Troops — Battle  of 
Roanoke  Island — The  Victory — Death  of  O.  Jennings  Wise — 
Character  of  the  Prisoners— "  Going  into  Business" — The 
Spy— Garbled  newspaper  reports — Good  news  from  all 
points — Speech  by  General  Reno. 

ON  Friday  morning,  (February  7th,)  coffee  was 
served  out  at  five  o'clock  throughout  the  whole  fleet. 
The  weather  was  warm,  but  very  foggy,  with  a  light 
sprinkling  of  rain.  The  little  tug-boats  were  as  busy 
as  bees,  steaming  around  and  through  the  fleet,  de 
livering  the  final  orders  on  the  programme  of  the 
day,  and  imparted  the  information  that  the  attack 
on  the  island  would  soon  begin.  By  ten  A.  M.  the 
fog  had  nearly  disappeared,  and  the  fleet  of  gunboats 
had  all  taken  up  their  positions,  and  were  now  only 
awaiting  the  giving  of  the  signal  to  open  the  "ball." 
In  their  rear  the  transports,  with  their  eager  freight, 
were  ready  with  their  launches,  gigs,  row  and  surf 
boats,  for  the  disembarking  of  the  troops  when  the 
signal  would  be  given,  that  the  time  had  come  to  do 
so.  While  these  proceedings  were  being  accom 
plished  Gens.  Burnside  and  Eeno  passed  up  and 
down  the  entire  length  of  the  expanded  fleet  in  their 
beautiful  "  gig,"  amid  the  most  enthusiastic  cheers. 
Their  kindly  beaming  countenances  inspired  the  men 
to  resolve  "  to  do  or  die."  As  they  returned  to  the 
decks  of  their  respective  vessels,  the  first  gun  was 
fired  at  Fort  Bartow  on  the  island  at  twenty-three 
minutes  past  eleven  o'clock  A.  M.,  and  almost  before 
the  reverberation  of  the  first  gun  had  died  away 
the  engagement  became  general.  The  infantry  on 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       73 

the  transports  were  in  a  position  to  have  a  grand 
view  of  the  bombardment,  which  will  be  remembered 
by  all  who  witnessed  it  as  a  display  of  unparallelled 
magnificence.  The  shell  flying  in  all  directions, 
the  thunder  of  the  enormous  guns  on  either  side,  the 
sharp  crack  of  the  exploding  shells  in  the  air,  their 
rapid  transit,  and  the  awful  crash  of  the  timbers  of 
some  gunboat,  as  an  unexploded  shell  would  pass 
through  her  staunch  sides,  or  mayhap  through  her 
smoke-stack  or  boiler.  The  engagement  raged  with 
all  fury  till  near  night,  when  the  firing  began  to 
slacken  until  it  nearly  ceased.  Occasional  shots  were 
exchanged  during  the  fore-  part  of  the  night,  but 
finally  ceased  entirely.  At  five  P.  M.,  of  the  7th  Feb 
ruary,  the  51st  embarked  on  board  the  gunboat  Dela 
ware,  and  landed  on  the  island  a  few  minutes  before 
eight  o'clock,  in  a  most  disagreeable  swamp  and  a 
heavy  rain.  The  disembarking  of  the  other  troops 
began  about  four  P.  M.,  and  by  nine  o'clock  the  en 
tire  body  of  troops  were  all  safely  landed  on  the 
island.  The  point  of  landing  was  about  one  and  a 
half  miles  below  the  enemy's  lower  fort,  in  a  large 
swampy  cornfield,  full  of  muskrat  holes,  and  the 
night  being  one  of  dense  darkness,  many  a  leg  un 
ceremoniously  entered  the  apertures,  pitching  its 
possessor  headlong  into  the  mire.  The  scene  of  land 
ing  the  troops  was  most  sublime,  grand  and  impos 
ing  :  everything  moved  with  chronometer  exactness 
and  quiet.  The  troops,  fully  equipped  for  the  fight, 
should  there  be  one,  entered  the  launches,  which,  in 
two  ranks  or  files  deep,  were  made  fast  to  a  hawser 
from  the  stern  of  the  preceding  launch,  five  feet 
apart,  to  the  bow  of  the  next  following  after.  Fif 
teen  or  twenty  ranks,  or  thirty  to  forty  boats,  would 


74        HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

be  thus  made  fast  to  a  single  hawser,  the  whole  taken 
in  tow  of  some  light  draught  steamer,  run  up  to  the 
shore  and  there  landed. 

The  feeling  of  the  men  of  the  51st  at  finding  them 
selves  once  more  on  land,  after  an  imprisonment  of 
five  weeks  on  board  of  an  overcrowded  vessel,  can 
never  be  fully  appreciated  only  by  those  who  have 
been  similarly  situated. 

As  soon  as  the  regiment  landed  it  bivouacked  in 
the  above-mentioned  swampy  cornfield,  and  posted 
its  pickets.  The  night  was  very  rainy ;  being  all 
unacquainted  with  the  conformation  of  the  ground, 
and  with  Jthe  intentions  or  positions  of  the  rebel 
troops,  the  pickets  were  posted  but  a  short  distance 
from  the  main  body,  but  in  close  proximity  to  the 
rebel  pickets  ;  in  fact  the  two  lines  of  pickets  were  so 
close  in  many  places  that  they  could  hear  each  other 
breathe,  but  owing  to  the  intense  darkness,  and  the 
thick  undergrowth  of  the  stunted  pines  and  other 
shrubbery,  they  could  not  distinguish  each  other. 
Some  pickets  thought  their  neighbors  were  of  their 
own  men,  while  others  thought  different,  but  to  make 
assurance  doubly  sure  for  their  own  safety,  not  a 
word  was  uttered  the  whole  night  by  either  party, 
but  daylight  of  next  morning  revealed  who  was 
friend  and  who  foe. 

The  rebels,  after  capture,  were  asked  why  they 
did  not  fire  on  the  "  Yanks  "  while  on  picket.  They 
replied,  "  We  were  afraid  that  you  were  too  strong 
for  us  to  kick  up  a  midnight  fight,  for  we  could 
plainly  see  your  main  line  by  the  numerous  small 
fires  by  which  you  were  cooking  your  suppers,  and 
we  saw  there  was  enough  of  you  to  eat  us  up." 

As  soon  as  the  51st  stacked  arms  and  supper  over, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       75 

each  man  laid  himself  down  on  the  wet  ground 
alongside  of  his  stack,  and  notwithstanding  the 
heavy  rain  that  continued  to  pour  down  all  night, 
they  slept  as  sweetly  and  soundly  as  if  resting  on 
beds  of  roses.  Many  of  them  on  waking  up  next 
morning  found  they  had  been  lying  in  two  or  three 
inches  of  water. 

The  next  morning,  the  8th,  they  were  called  to 
arms  at  daylight,  as  the  pickets  began  their  work  as 
soon  as  it  was  light  enough  to  distinguish  an  object, 
consequently  no  breakfast  could  be  got  that  morn 
ing  by  the  troops.  By  half-past  six  A.  M.  the  battle 
was  fairly  opened  in  a  dense  forest  of  pine  trees,  all 
undergrown  with  stunted  shrubbery,  indigenous  to 
swamp  land,  but  the  contending  forces  had  taken  the 
"  measure  "  of  each  other.  The  enemy,  seemingly 
stubborn,  began,  retreating  toward  the  centre  of  the 
island,  where  they  had  a  three-gun  battery,  masked, 
and  almost  entirely  surrounded  by  water  from  one 
to  four  feet  deep,  being  built  in  the  centre  of  an  ex 
tensive  swamp,  with  no  dry  ground  about  it  save 
the  solitary  public  road  that  leads  from  the  lower  to 
the  upper  end  of  the  island,  passing  through  the 
fort.  Access  to  this  fort  by  any  other  than  the  pub 
lic  ri.  ad  could  only  be  had  through  the  deep  swamp, 
which  was  almost  impenetrable  on  account  of  the 
long,  green  chapparal  briar.  The  51st  was  kept  in 
line  of  battle  from  daylight  as  a  reserved  force  until 
about  8J  o'clock  A.  M.,  when,  as  the  enemy  gave  way 
to  our  troops,  the  51st  would  follow  up  within  sup 
porting  distance.  While  waiting  in  'the  woods  for 
orders  the  wounded  of  those  who  went  into  action 
early  in  the  morning  began  to  pass  on  stretchers,  or 
leaning  on  the  arms  of  sympathizing  comrades,  or 


76        HISTOEY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

crawling  along  as  best  they  could,  each  directing  his 
course  toward  the  hospital  that  had  been  established 
where  they  bivouacked  the  night  before.  At  10  A. 
M.  the  battle  raged  in  all  its  fury.  The  enemy,  under 
cover  of  their  fort,  possessed  decided  advantage  over 
the  Union  forces,  for  their  artillery  was  in  a  com 
manding  position  and  could  sweep  everything  pass 
ing  in  front  of  it,  while  the  Unionists  had  only  two 
light  marine  howitzers  which  had  been  dragged  into 
"  battery  "  by  hand  and  were  posted  in  a  corner  of 
the  woods  where  it  was  too  swampy  to  render  them 
of  much  assistance  to  the  infantry.  Directly  in  front 
of  the  rebel  works  the  enemy  had  made  (to  use  a 
Southern  phrase)  a  "  slashing,"  which  is  the  felling 
of  trees  for  two  purposes,  one  is  to  give  themselves 
a  clear  and  unobstructed  view  of  the  approach  of 
their  enemy  and  a  clear  range  for  their  guns ;  the 
other  is,  by  felling  trees  in  a  confused  mass,  without 
lopping  off  boughs,  makes  it  difficult  to  pass  over  the 
ground  as  well  as  dangerous. 

This  slashing  was  in  length  about  half  a  mile, 
and  in  breadth  about  four  hundred  yards,  with  the 
above-mentioned  road  passing  through  the  middle 
lengthwise. 

As  the  enemy  fell  back  to  the  cover  of  their 
battery  the  51st  was  ordered  up  with  the  4th  Khode 
Island  volunteers,  to  endeavor  to  make  a  lodgement 
on  the  right  flank  of  the  enemy's  works.  The  51st 
made  efforts  to  cut  its  way  through  the  dense  under 
growth  of  briars  and  bushes.  After  penetrating  the 
swamp  a  couple  of  hundred  yards  it  was  found  to  be 
impossible  to  get  through,  and  the  enemy  already 
discovering  their  whereabouts  and  designs,  began 
shelling  and  grapeing  them  with  unrelenting  fury. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  77 

Col.  Hartranft  decided  to  move  Ms  regiment  directly 
in  front  of  the  enemy's  guns  and  make  an  effort  to 
get  in  on  their  left  flank.  Could  this  latter  move 
ment  have  been  executed  with  rapidity  the  comple 
tion  of  it  would  have  ended  the  battle.  While  the 
51st  P.  V.  and  the  4th  Rhode  Island  were  passing  in 
front  of  the  works  and  across  the  slashing  they  en 
deavored  to  conceal  themselves  as  much  as  possible, 
but  the  enemy  caught  a  glimpse  of  them  as  they 
were  plunging  their  way  among  the  dead,  dying  and 
wounded,  through  the  deep  and  muddy  swamp,  and 
poured  into  them  volley  after  volley  of  grape  and 
canister  shots,  but  with  no  other  harm  than  carry 
ing  away  half  of  the  bayonet  off  the  musket  of  Reese 
Grey,  of  Co.  D,  51st  P.  V.  The  24th,  25th  and  27th 
Mass.  Vols.,  and  the  9th  New  York  Vols.  and  9th 
New  Jersey  suffered  the  most  at  this  point.  The 
swamp  was  strewn  with  their  dead,  dying  and 
wounded,  indicative  of  the  fierceness  of  the  battle  in 
the  early  part  of  the  day. 

After  passing  over  this  place  Col.  Hartranft,  aided 
by  Capt.  Geo.  R.  Pechin,  commenced  to  hack  their 
way  through  the  briars  with  their  swords  to  effect 
the  desired  object  of  getting  in  on  the  enemy's  left. 
As  every  foot  of  passage-way  was  gained  by  them 
the  51st  followed  up  each  step,  and  in  turn  was  fol 
lowed  by  the  4th  R.  I.  While  nearly  on  the  flank 
of  the  works  and  making  efforts  to  get  across  to  the 
fort,  a  distance  of  about  150  yards,  the  9th  New 
York  (Hawkin's  Zouaves)  charged  in  solid  column 
up  the  road  into  the  fort,  capturing  the  three  guns  and 
caissons,  one  of  which  was  a  Mexican  18-pounder, 
another  a  Dahlgren  12-pounder,  and  the  third  one  a 


78        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Napoleon  24-pounder,  all  of  which  had  been  spiked 
with  rat-tail  files. 

The  nature  of  the  ground  around  the  fort  made  it 
difficult  to  get  into  it,  for  in  many  places  the  swamp 
was  waist  to  arm-pit  deep,  no  dry  land  in  front  or  on 
either  flank,  except  the  narrow  road  of  twelve  feet 
wide,  of  corduroy.  Tt  had  been  raining  all  the 
night  before  and  that  day;  and  no  doubt  the  rain  had 
added  considerably  to  the  advantage  of  the  enemy, 
by  increasing  the  depth  of.  the  swamp  ;  but  it  availed 
them  nothing,  for  at  1.30  p.  M.  the  fort  was  in  Burn- 
side's  possession,  and  the  rebels  fleeing  to  the  upper 
end  of  the  island  in  dire  confusion,  "  worse  con 
founded"  by  being  followed  by  our  brave  "boys  in 
blue,"  close  on  to  their  heels.  So  close  was  the  race, 
that  the  fleeing  "Johnnies"  had  strewn  the  roadside 
for  miles  with  everything  that  was  the  least  cumber 
some  to  them  in  their  precipitate  flight.  Haversacks, 
canteens,  knapsacks,  blankets,  clothing  of  all  kinds, 
swords,  bowie-knives;  pistols,  cartridge-boxes,  mus 
kets,  belts,  and  rations,  literally  covered  the  ground 
for  six  miles.  So  anxious  were  they  to  escape  the 
invaders  that  they  shot  their  mules  and  horses, 
leaving  them  to  die  in  the  road,  rather  than  to  let  them 
fall  alive  into  the  hands  of  the  "  cussed  Yankees." 

The  total  of  killed  and  wounded  in  this  battle  was 
one  hundred  and  seventy-eight  Unionists  and  eighty- 
three  rebels,  according  to  the  records  of  the  hospitals  ; 
only  one  of  which  was  of  the  51st  P.  V.  The  rebels 
in  their  flight  expected  to  have  reached  the  upper 
end  of  the  island  in  time  to  get  on  their  gun  and  other 
boats,  and  make  their  escape  across  Koanoke  Sound 
to  "Nagg's  Head;"  but  their  foe  followed  too  close 
for  them,  and  arrived  at  the  upper  end  of  the  island 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       79 

as  soon  as  they.  That  prince  of  villains,  Henry  A. 
Wise,  cowardly  deserted  his  dying  son,  O.  Jennings 
Wise,  who  had  been  wounded  and  left  at  a  farm 
house,  to  die  in  the  hands  of  his  enemy,  about  two 
miles  above  the  fort. 

At  3.30  P.  M.  the  enemy  surrendered  uncondition 
ally  to  the  Union  forces  about  two  thousand  five 
hundred  men  and  the  same  number  of  small  arms, 
with  about  thirty  large  siege  guns,  some  of  very 
heavy  metal.  Soon  after  the  surrender  of  the  island, 
a  rebel  gunboat  arrived  with  a  large  number  of 
troops  to  reinforce  the  enemy.  They,  not  being 
aware  yet  of  the  surrender,  began  disembarking.  As 
soon  as  they  were  all  on  shore,  Gen.  Eeno  politely 
informed  them  that  they  were  prisoners.  Their 
consternation  can  be  imagined,  but  not  described, 
when  they  were  informed  of  the  surrender  of  the 
island  and  the  flight  of  that  archtraitor,  Wise,  and 
the  death  of  0.  Jennings  Wise. 

They  evinced  much  mortification  at  being  thus 
easily  captured.  Their  curses  were  loud  and  of  the 
most  bitter  character  against  the  garrison,  for  cow 
ardly  permitting  them  to  land  in  ignorance  of  the  sur 
render,  as  they  allege  they  could  have  got  off  clear, 
if  they  had  only  been  given  a  signal  to  that  effect. 

Now  that  the  island  had  succumbed  to  the  com 
bined  land  and  naval  forces,  the  51st,  as  well  as 
others,  had  to  turn  their  attention  to  hunting  up 
quarters.  In  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  the  Union 
troops  found  that  the  rebels  had  two  good  sized  vil 
lages  of  barracks  built  on  the  island,  nearly  sufficient 
in  number  to  quarter  all  the  Union  troops  and  thoir 
prisoners. 

Now  that  quarters  were  obtained,  the  victorious 


80        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

army  turned  its  attention  next  to  procure  something 
to  eat.  Although  nearly  night,  many  of  the  men  of 
the  51st  had  not  tasted  a  morsel  of  food  since  the 
night  before.  Large  quantities  of  wheat  flour,  corn 
meal,  white  and  sweet  potatoes,  rice,  beans,  salt  pork 
and  bacon,  and  sugar,  with  some  little  coffee,  was 
found  in  the  commissary  department  of  the  C.  S.  A., 
and  fires  were  soon  kindled,  "  slap-jacks  "  were  made, 
pork  fried,  coffee  boiled,  and  the  wants  of  the  inner 
man  well  satisfied.  After  their  palatable  meal,  the 
next  thing  in  order  was  drying  their  clothing,  which 
was  well  saturated  from  sleeping  in  the  rain  the 
night  before ;  also  being  in  the  rain  all  that  day,  and 
from  wading  through  the  deep  swamp  surrounding 
the  fort  and  battle-ground.  It  was  midnight  when 
the  most  of  them  had  laid  themselves  down  to  rest; 
•  being  weary  from  the  excitement  of  the  day  and  the 
rapid  march  after  the  retreating  foe,  and  weak  from 
the  want  of  food,  they  were  soon  locked  up  in  the 
arms  of  Morpheus,  and  enjoying  tired  nature's  sweet 
restorer,  balmy  sleep.  About  thirty  of  the  regiment, 
however,  were  detailed  for  camp  guard;  consequently 
they  had  but  little  sleep  that  night. 

Between  one  and  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  all 
hands  were  aroused  to  receive  a  ration  of  whiskey, 
the  surgeons  deeming  it  the  best  time  for  it  to  be 
given,  as  a  good  number  had  lain  down  in  their  wet 
clothing,  and  were  also  very  much  fatigued.  It  was 
an  acceptable  draught,  even  at  that  late  hour  of  the 
night. 

The  prisoners  were  gathered  up  on  Sunday  morn 
ing,  as  per  order  of  Gen.  Burnside,  under  the  per 
sonal  attendance  of  Maj.  Schall,  who,  with  several 
clerks  detailed  from  the  51st,  "took  an  account  of 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.       81 

stock,"  such  as  the  number  of  prisoners,  their  names, 
companies,  battalions,  or  regiments,  legion,  or  what 
ever  else  they  happened  to  belong  to,  their  residence, 
township,  county,  and  State. 

The  names  of  many  of  the  organizations  were 
ludicrous  in  the  extreme ;  but  what  seemed  the  most 
strange  was  their  total  ignorance  of  the  body  to 
which  they  belonged,  such  as  what  regiment,  brigade, 
division,  or  corps.  Perhaps  they  had  no  particular 
organization  beyond  the  company  to  which  they 
were  attached.  About  five  per  cent,  of  them  only 
were  able  to  tell  how  their  names  were  spelled. 
The  names  of  the  different  organizations,  as  a  sample, 
were:  Co.  A,  0.  K.  Boys;  Co.  B,  Auburn  Guards; 
Co.  C,  Hatteras  Avengers !  Co.  D,  Jeff  Davis  Boys ; 
Co.  E,  Cape  Fear  Boys;  Co.  F,  Kip  Van  Winkle 
Guards ;  Co.  G,  Wake  Eastern  Guards ;  Go's.  H  and 
I  were  part  of  Wise's  Legion,  of  Albemarle  county, 
V"a.  Although  the  above  companies  were  lettered, 
yet  the  members  of  them  disclaimed  belonging  to 
any  regiment  or  other  organization  than  those  men 
tioned.  They  numbered  four  hundred  and  ninety  - 
seven  noncommissioned  officers  and  privates.  They 
possibly  did  riot  belong  to  anything  else  than  indi 
vidual  companies,  as  they  had  no  idea  of  it  taking 
them  long  to  whip  the  "  Yankees,"  and  probably 
thought  it  useless  to  further  organize ! 

Some  other  organizations  were  pleased  to  style 
themselves  Mississippi  Wild-cats,  Louisiana  Tigers, 
Hardscrabble  Kangers,  &c.,  &c. 

This  duty  of  registering  was  completed  on  Thurs 
day,  February  13th.  They  were  principally  North 
Carolinians  and  Virginians,  and  a  few  from  Georgia, 
Mississippi,  and  Louisiana.  Take  them  all  in  all, 

5 


82        HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

they  were  a  woful-looking  set  of  ragamuffins.  Dirty, 
covered  with  vermin,  and  very  illiterate,  not  more 
than  two  per  cent,  of  them  being  able  to  read  and 
write !  When  one  was  found  that  could  do  both,  he 
was  "  reckoned  "  a  "  right  smart "  scholar.  They 
had  been  led  to  believe  that  the  Yankees  were  a 
barbarous  race  of  people,  and  therefore  the  poor 
devils  were  very  much  afraid  that  now,  as  they  were 
prisoners,  their  lives  would  be  forfeited,  and  their 
anxiety  was  most  intense  until  they  were  assured  by 
Maj.  Schall  that  their  lives,  were  perfectly  safe  while 
in  the  hands  of  the  Union  troops,  and  they  would  be 
exchanged  in  a  few  days. 

Very  little  is  known,  excepting  by  the  participants, 
of  the  difficulty  experienced  in  following  the  retreat 
ing  rebels  to  the  upper  end  of  the  island. 

The  51st,  in  making  its  way  out  of  the  swamp  by 
the  flank,  with  Capt.  Wm.  J.  Bolton's  Co.  A  on  the 
advance,  had  to  pass  through  indefinite  numbers  of 
dangerous  holes.  From  the  uneven  nature  of  the 
ground,  one  foot  would  not  be  in  water  perhaps  over 
five  or  six  inches  deep,  the  other  in  stepping  would 
plung  into  a  hole  of  three  feet  deep,  making  the  move 
ment  not  only  dangerous,  but  of  excessive  toil.  The 
day  being  one  of  that  peculiar  "  murky  "  heat,  natu 
ral  to  the  Carolinas  in  the  winter  season,  the  perspi 
ration  poured  off  the  men  from  exertion  in  wading 
through  the  swarnps  and  disentangling  themselves 
from  the  chapparal  briars. 

The  retreat  of  the  enemy  from  the  fort  was  press, 
ingly  followed  by  their  pursuers.  The  51st  followed 
close  upon  their  heels  for  upwards  of  five  miles, 
when,  from  the  heated  condition  of  the  men,  it  was 
obliged  to  halt  for  five  minutes  to  rest,  at  an  old 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.       83 

blacksmith  shop  nearly  two  miles  below  the  rebel 
barracks.  At  the  expiration  of  that  time,  it  resumed 
the  march,  capturing  straggling  rebels,  dragging 
them  out  of  their  hiding-places,  and  picking  them 
up  wherever  found. 

After  being  assigned  to  quarters  in  the  late  rebel 
barracks,  the  men  made  huge  fires,  and  stripping 
off  their  clothing,  wrung  out  the  water  and  dried 
them  by  the  fires  ;  then  sank  down  on  the  floors  of 
their  quarters,  exhausted  with  fatigue  and  the  ex 
citement  of  their  maiden  fight ;  all  were  soon  asleep, 
and  many  of  them  on  being  aroused  to  receive  their 
ration  of  whiskey,  would  drink  it  and  be  unconscious 
of  the  circumstance,  so  completely  were  they  over 
come  with  fatigue ;  but  in  the  morning  they  awoke 
considerably  refreshed,  and  many  of  them  took  their 
guns  and  went  out  on  their  uown  hook"  into  the 
dense  swamps  and  pine  forest,  and  returned  in  a  short 
time  with  one  or  more  prisoners,  of  which,  upwards  of 
150  were  captured  in  this  manner,  who  would,  no 
doubt,  have  made  their  escape  from  the  island  and 
got  clear,  by  way  of  Nagg's  Head.  A  few  hogs  were 
found  running  at  large  on  the  island,  and  the  boys 
appropriated  them  to  their  own  use  ;  and  many  a 
tit-bit  was  picked  up  in  this  way,  that  was  lying 
"around  loose."  Great  quantities  of  sweet  potatoes, 
salt  fish  and  molasses  were  found  buried  beneath  the 
sandy  soil,  to  hide  them  from  the  invading  Yankees, 
but  all  to  no  purpose,  for  the  latter  would  have  dug 
up  every  foot  of  the  island,  but  what  they  would 
have  satisfied  themselves  that  nothing  was  hid. 

An  amusing,  yet  not  a  very  praiseworthy  event 
took  place  a  few  days  after  the  capture 'of  the  island. 
A  "  secesh  "  kept  a  small  grocery  store  on  the  lower 


84        HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

end  of  the  island,  about  ten  miles  below  the  bar 
racks.  An  enterprising  "  Yankee "  of  the  51st 
thought  that  he  would  like  to  go  into  business  "  on 
his  own  hook,"  to  replenish  his  "  sweanied  pocket- 
book."  He  entered  the  store  and  passed  the  com 
pliments  of  the  day  with  the  proprietor,  and  en 
quired  into  the  commercial  status  of  the  island,  to 
all  of  which  the  "  Johnny  "  gave  very  satisfactory 
replies.  When  about  a  dozen  other  Yankees,  from  as 
many  other  regiments,  entered  to  purchase  whiskey, 
the  proprietor  denied  having  any  on  hand  just  then. 
The  51st  Yankee  jumped  over  the  counter,  and  po 
litely  invited  the  proprietor  to  get  in  front  of  it,  as 
he  intended  to  "run  the  machine"  himself.  His 
rebel  majesty  obeyed,  and  the  newly  installed  store 
keeper  informed  his  customers  that  all  they  had 
to  do  was  to  ask  him  for  what  they  wanted,  and  he 
wouldn't  deny  them,  at  least  not  until  he  first  satis 
fied  himself  that  he  was  "just  out."  Three  hams 
were  first  asked  for,  but  the  51st  storekeeper  coming 
so  recently  in  possession  of  his  stock,  knew  not  just 
the  place  to  put  his  hands  on  it  when  wanted,  and 
the  former  owner  pretending  not  to  know,  could,  or 
would  not  give  the  information.  Nothing  daunted, 
however,  the  Fifty- firster  ransacked  the  whole  build 
ing,  and  finally  found  a  whole  barrel  of  hams  cov 
ered  over  with  trash.  He  soon  supplied  the  appli 
cants  with  three  hams,  at  10  cents  per  pound,  and 
asking  his  customers  the  usual  question,  "  anything 
else,  gentlemen  ?"  they  responded  by  handing  a 
few  canteens  to  "  please  fill."  In  hunting  the  hams, 
he  had  found  whiskey,  and  filled  the  canteens  at 
two  dollars  each.  That  being  all  they  wanted,  they 
were  about  leaving,  when  the  51st  Yankee  thought 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  85 

"he  might  do  a  brisker  business  by  "  advertising " 
his  new  occupation,  and  therefore  requested  his  new 
customers  to  please  inform  the  "  boys  of  their  re 
spective  regiments,"  that  he  had  just  opened  a  new 
store  on  his  own  account,  and  would  thank  them  for 
their  patronage.  In  about  an  hour  his  customers 
began  to  flock  in  from  all  quarters,  wanting  generally 
the  one  thing,  i.  e.,  whiskey  !  which  he  continued  to 
supply  until  the  stock  became  exhausted.  He  be 
gan  to  think  it  near  time  for  him  to  go  to  camp,  and 
therefore  before  he  closed  his  store,  he  wrote  the  fol 
lowing  :  "  Notice.  This  store  will  be  opened  to 
morrow  morning,  at  8  o'clock.  T.  Troy/'  and  pasted 
it  on  the  front  door.  He  then  told  the  former  pro 
prietor  to  "  Come  out  and  run  home,  as  I  want  to 
shut  up  ;"  but  the  "  original "  refused,  and  boldly 
remonstrated  with  the  51st  Yankee,  and  tried  by 
persuasion  to  be  restored  in  his  right,  but  was  re 
fused  any  connection  with  the  store,  by  any  means. 
At  length,  the  "  old  Johnny  "  allowed  his  passion  to 
run  riot  with  sound  judgment,  and  began  to  threaten 
what  he  would  do  ;  such  as  appealing  to  ll  Gen. 
Burnside,  &c.,"  but  threats  fared  no  better  than 
suasion.  The  "  scout  "  getting  impatient  to  "  shut 
up,"  he  told  the  "  Johnny  "  that  time  was  money, 
and  he  must  not  make  him  waste  it.  The  old  man 
got  stubborn  and  would  not  leave  the  store,  and 
consequently  was  locked  in;  but  as  the  key  was 
turned,  he  relented,  and  begged  hard  to  be  set  at 
liberty  again,  which  was  readily  granted.  The  door 
was  again  locked,  and  the  key  brought  into  camp. 
Next  morning,  as  per  announcement,  the  store  was 
duly  opened,  and  the  first  customer  was  the  original 
storekeeper  himself,  and  soon  thereafter  the  store 


86        HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST    REGIMENT 

was  thronged  with  patrons  till  near  noon,  when  the 
supply  ran  out,  and  our  51st  Yankee  retired  from 
business  to  the  quiet  of  camp-life. 

For  some  time  after  the  capture  of  the  island,  the 
conveniences  for  cooking  were  poor  indeed,  but  the 
boys  rinding  plenty  of  sugar  hid  away  in  different 
places,  managed  to  make  their  food  palatable.  Wheat 
flour  and  corn  meal  was  found  in  considerable  quan 
tities,  and  they  baked  their  "slap-jacks"  as  fre 
quently  as  their  appetites  craved  them. 

While  having  the  captured  prisoners  under  guard, 
there  were  seyeral  night  alarms  created,  it  being 
ascertained  that  the  prisoners  intended  to  effect  an 
escape.  Several  had  made  the  attempt,  but  the  guards 
fired  their  pieces,  and  hence  the  alarms.  Nine  suc 
ceeded  in  escaping,  but  were  retaken  next  day. 

On  the  llth  of  February,  all  the  baggage  and 
cooking  utensils  were  brought  off'  the  Cossack, 
from  where  she  had  been  lying  since  the  51st  had 
disembarked.  The  taking  of  Elizabeth  on  the  10th, 
by  the  gunboats,  was  duly  announced  to  the  51st 
on  the  evening  of  the  llth,  causing  much  rejoicing 
and  wild  speculation  as  to  the  early  closing  of  the 
rebellion.  On  the  12th,  a  large  number  of  captured 
officers  and  men  were  put  on  board  of  one  of  the 
transports  and  sent  to  New  York.  While  employed 
as  clerk  in  taking  the  names,  &c.,  of  the  prisoners, 
the  writer  recognized  in  one  of  the  captives,  a  man 
(an  orderly-sergeant)  belonging  to  Co.  A,  31st  Eeg- 
iment  North  Carolina  Vols.,  who  had  visited  the 
51st  when  lying  at  Camp  Union,  Annapolis,  Md., 
representing  himself  as  a  book  canvasser  and  sell 
ing  treatises  on  military  tactics,  the  writer  purchas 
ing  one  from  him  ;  he  said  he  was  a  sergeant  in  the 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  87 

51st  New  York.  After  obtaining  his  name,  which 
he  gave  as  J.  D.  Gatling,  of  Anson  county,  North 
Carolina,  I  brought  the  circumstance  up  in  conver 
sation  with  him,  but  he  stoutly  denied  ever  being 
employed  as  a  spy  in  any  way  and  at  any  time. 
His  denial  though,  could  not  impress  the  writer  with 
its  truthfulness,  for  he  had  still  in  bis  possession  a 
book  of  the  very  style  that  was  purchased,  and  I 
never  saw  one  like  it  before  I  purchased  mine,  or 
afterwards  until  I  saw  the  one  he  had  after  his  cap 
ture  ;  nor  have  I  ever  seen  any  since  like  it.  He, 
as  a  rarity  among  the  rebel  enlisted  men,  was  shrewd 
and  cautious  in  his  conversation,  fully  coming  up  to 
the  standard  of  what  is  necessary  to  make  a  suc 
cessful  spy.  At  the  capture  of  Elizabeth  City  by 
the  gunboats  belonging  to  the  expedition,  the  steamer 
"  Fanny  "  that  was  captured  by  the  rebels  off  Hat- 
teras  Inlet,  was  recaptured  by  Burnside's  expedition 
and  restored  to  the  service  of  the  U.  S.  Government 
in  a  good  condition,  the  rebels  not  having  time  to 
destroy  her.  The  51st  were  recipients  in  part  of 
8000  pounds  of  fresh  beef  presented  to  the  Burnside 
expedition  by  the  citizens  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
as  a  token  of  their  appreciation  of  gallantry  dis 
played  by  the  troops  in  taking  the  island.  It  was 
received  in  a  spirit  of  kindness,  but  very  little  of  it 
could  be  used,  as  it  necessarily  had  to  be  kept  too 
long  in  bringing  it  so  far.  The  warm,  rainy  weather 
spoiled  the  greater  portion  of  it. 

The  following  extract  is  from  a  private  letter 
written  at  Fort  Russell,  on  the  18th  of  February, 
giving  a  very  correct  description  of  the  island  at 
that  date  :  "  I  must  now  give  you  a  description  of 
this  locality.  Well,  in  the  first  place,  it  is  all  sur- 


88        HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

rounded  by  tbe  waters  of  Eoanoke,  Croatan,  Pamlico 
and  Albernarle  sounds,  and  is  situated  about  two 
miles  from  the  nearest  point  of  the  mainland.  The 
island  is  about  ten  or  twelve  miles  long,  and  from 
one  to  three  miles  wide,  lying  nearly  level  with  the 
water  of  the  sounds.  The  soil  is  nothing  much  but 
pure  white  sand.  The  lower  part  of  the  island,  say 
about  four  miles  of  it,  is  almost  an  impassable 
swamp.  In  this  swamp  is  where  the  battle  was 
fought,  and  where  Fort  Russell  (the  three-gun  bat 
tery)  stands.  The  grass  here  (where  it  does  grow) 
is  very  green,  and  about  three  inches  long,  but  noth 
ing  much  grows  here,  except  pine  and  cypress  trees, 
covered  with  a  long,  grayish  moss,  hanging  in  fes 
toons  of  one  to  six  feet  in  length.  Wherever  you 
find  any  other  kind  of  a  tree,  it  is  invariably  covered 
with  the  beautiful  "  mistletoe,"  which  is  now  out  in 
full  bloom.  The  prickly  pear  which  people  up 
North  propagate  in  flower  pots,  grows  all  over  the 
island  in  a  wild  state.  The  middle  part  of  the  island 
is  somewhat  dryer  than  the  lower  end,  having  im 
mense  sand  hills,  some  of  which  reach  an  altitude 
of  several  hundred  feet ;  all  drifted  there  like  snow 
drifts,  by  the  strong  winds  blowing  the  sand  from 
the  beach  that  skirts  the  Roanoke  and  Croatan 
sounds.  On  the  western  shore  of  the  island,  are 
the  forts  we  bombarded.  On  the  eastern  shore  is  a 
large  fort,  but  only  mounting  two  thirty- two  pound 
ers.  On  the  upper  end  is  an  antiquated  wind-mill, 
where  the  islanders  used  to  grind  corn.  The  deni 
zens  of  the  island  live  here  solely  by  fishing  and 
trading  with  the  North,  but  since  the  war  broke  out 
they  dare  not  leave  the  island,  consequently  they 
have  suffered  a  great  deal,  having  scarcely  anything 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       89 

to  eat,  all  their  provisions  having  been  stolen  from 
them.  I  wish  you  could  see  their  horses,  I  know 
they  would  make  you  laugh.  They  are  very  small, 
and  look  more  like  bears  than  what  they  are.  They 
have  no  carts,  wagons  or  carriages.  They  have  two 
Dearborn  wheels  on  an  axle-tree,  and  two  poles  for 
shafts,  with  a  board  or  two  nailed  to  them,  the  whole 
constituting  their  vehicles  of  pleasure  and  cartage. 
The  horses  wear  no  collars  whatever,  the  hames, 
resting  on  the  bare  shoulder,  and  a  rope  bridle  corn- 
pose  all  the  harness  needed  or  used.  The  cows  are 
all  very  small,  none  of  which  will  weigh,  over  200  or 
250  pounds,  and  are  very  poor.  The  farmers  raise 
Indian  corn  and  sweet  potatoes,  but  nothing  else. 
The  land  is  worth  from  $2.50  to  §3.00  per  acre  ; 
choice  tracts  $5.00  per  acre.  The  frogs  are  croak 
ing  arid  the  crickets  chirping  every  night.  Red 
birds,  robins,  blue  and  cat  birds,  are  in  abundance 
here." 

On  the  14th  of  February,  Colonel  Hartranft 
formed  the  regiment  and  took  it,  much  to  the 
delight  of  the  men,  on  a  tour  of  recreation  over  the 
island,  to  visit  the  different  spots  of  interest,  one  of 
which  was  the  above-mentioned  sand  hills,  that  are 
truly  a  curious  freak  of  nature  and  a  great  curiosity. 
The  next  day,  the  51st  paid  a  regimental  or  official 
visit  to  all  the  forts  and  works  on  the  island.  As 
the  regiment  entered  the  works,  cheer  upon  cheer 
would  rend  the  air  for  everything  and  everybody. 
All  returned  to  their  barracks  highly  pleased  with 
their  visit.  About  this  time  the  men  discovered 
that  the  enemy,  in  attempting  their  escape  from  the 
island  at  its  capture,  had  in  wading  out  to  their  gun 
boats  thrown  away  in  deep  water  their  huge  bowie- 

5* 


90        HISTOEY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

knives,  revolvers  and  muskets.  Every  conceivable 
object  that  could  be  invented,  was  used  «by  the  men 
to  fish  up  the  articles  from  the  bottom  of  the  sound, 
and  many  were  very  successful.  A  large  number  of 
weapons  were  brought  to  the  barracks  and  sold  for 
exorbitant  prices,  as  relics.  The  knives  were  very 
massive,  and  of  a  primitive  style  of  make,  and  very 
unwieldy,  yet  showing  as  they  did,  the  will  of  their 
former  owners  to  "hew  and  hack"  their  Yankee 
brethren  without  mercy,  in  which,  thank  the  Al 
mighty,  they  were  disappointed. 

On  the  16th  of  February,  Corporal  Jas.  Mauger, 
of  Co.  I,  died.  His  was  the  first  death  that  occurred 
in  the  regiment  since  the  capture  of  the  island.  He 
was  buried  the  next  day  on  the  upper  end  of  the 
island,  in  the  rear  of  the  hospital. 

During  the  stay  of  the  regiment  on  the  island 
large  details  were  made  daily  for  camp  and  garrison 
duty,  such  as  policing,  guarding,  picketing,  unload 
ing  vessels,  and  other  fatigue  duty,  incident  to  such 
occasions. 

Co.  I,  under  command  of  2d  Lieut.  George  Schall, 
was  detailed  to  garrison  Fort  Russell,  on  the  battle 
ground  of  the  8th  of  the  month,  where  he  and  his 
command  remained  until  the  ordnance  officer  of  the 
expedition,  on  the  23d  of  February,  took  possession 
of  the  three  guns  and  caissons  that  were  in  the  fort 
at  its  capture. 

Capt.  Geo.  E.  Pechin  and  1st  Lieut.  Geo.  W.  Bis- 
bing  of  Co.  I,  were  not  in  command  of  the  company 
till  after  the  taking  of  Newbern,  on  account  of  severe 
indisposition  brought  on  by  over-exertion  on  the 
day  of  battle  and  by  taking  cold  from  excessive  wet 
in  wading  through  the  deep  swamps. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       91 

On  the  25th  of  February,  a  large  mail  from  the 
North  arrived,  bringing  papers  which  gave  an  ac 
count  of  the  taking  of  the  island,  but  the  51st  had 
been  accounted  for  as  only  on  "  reserve."  Much 
indignation  was  evinced,  and  the  one-sided  penny-a- 
liners  came  in  for  a  large  share  of  genuine  anathe 
mas  from  those  of  the  51st  P.  V.  But  after  a  close 
inquiry,  why  the  51st  received  so  little  notice  from 
the  press,  it  was  made  plain  enough  from  the  fact 
that  all  the  troops  composing  the  great  expedition 
were  Eastern,  and  that  the  51st  P.  V.  was  the  only 
representation  from  the  old  Keystone  State.  Having 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  "  Philistines,"  conse 
quently  their  dislike  and  avoidance  to  give  it  (the 
51st)  any  credit,  was  only  to  add  lustre  to  their 
own  laurels. 

The  indignation  of  both  officers  and  men  was  at 
the  highest  pitch,  on  their  seeing  an  engraving  in 
"  Frank  Leslie's  "  paper,  wherein  it  represented  the 
51st  in  a  false  light,  giving  it  little  or  no  credit  for 
its  participation  in  the  battle.  The  reason  was 
obvious,  the  51st  being  the  only  Pennsylvania  regi 
ment  with  Burnside,  and  the  reporters  and  artists 
all  in  the  employ  of  Eastern  papers,  consequently 
they  had  eyes  only  for  Eastern  troops. 

The  fishing  season  was  just  opening  for  shad,  &c., 
and  in  the  time  intervening  between  drill  hours,  the 
boys  would  enjoy  the  piscatorial  sport  with  some 
remuneration  for  their  labors  by  making  good  use  of 
the  shad  and  herring  nets  abundant  on  the  island. 

On  the  28th,  the  regiment  was  mustered  for  pay, 
and  immediately  after  muster  the  whole  regiment 
was  detailed  for  general  guard  and  picket  duty. 

On   Saturday.    March    1st,    the   51st  received  the 


92        HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

pleasing  intelligence  of  the  taking  of  Savannah, 
Memphis,  Nashville,  Forts  Donelson  and  Henry,  the 
evacuation  of  Manassas,  and  that  the  Mayor  of  Nor 
folk  had  invited  Gen.  Wool  to  come  there,  also  that 
two  rebel  Tennessee  regiments  had  expressed  their 
willingness  to  join  the  Union  army,  and  a  host  of 
other  gratifying  rumors,  causing  at  night  one  grand 
and  general  illumination  of  the  island.  Every  band 
belonging  to  the  expedition  was  out  playing  and 
marching  through  all  the  camps  in  honor  of  the 
cheering  news.  The  different  regiments  assembled 
at  the  headquarters  of  Gen.  Jesse  L.  Reno,  who 
came  out  and  addressed  the  troops  in  a  most  elo 
quent  and  patriotic  strain  for  nearly  half  an  hour, 
proving  himself  an  orator  of  the  first  standing  as 
well  as  a  skilful  general.  At  the  conclusion  of  his 
remarks,  he  paid  a  glowing  tribute  to  the  51st  P.  Y. 
and  its  daring  leader,  and  that  "there  was  bat  one 
blow  more  to  be  struck  to  end  the  rebellion,  and  in 
that  last  blow  the  51st  should  take  a  prominent  part, 
and  have  a  chance  to  distinguish  itself  to  its  fullest 
satisfaction."  The  last  remark  was  cheered  ^with 
unbounded  enthusiasm  by  the  51st  P.  Y.,  and  was 
joined  in  with  by  all  the  assembled  regiments.  Thus 
passed  one  of  the  most  gratifying  evenings  in  the 
career  of  the  51st.  The  troops  then  all  retired 
about  midnight  to  their  quarters,  to  dream  of  soon 
being  on  their  way  to  their  "bright  and  happy 
homes,  so  far  away!"  and  the  war  at  an  end. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       93 


CHAPTER    VI. 

All  aboard— The  new  Enficlcls— Sailing  of  the  Fleet— Landing 
at  Slocum's  creek — March  to  Newbern— Battle  of  Newbern — 
A  patriot's  death — Lieut.  Morris — Charge  of  the  51st — Cap 
ture  of  the  rebel  works — Poisoned  food — The  51st  on  a  scout — 
Bridge-burning  and  foraging — Return  to  Camp. 

ON  Monday,  March  3d;  1862,  the  51st  received 
orders  to  draw  three  days'  rations,  and  to  pack  up 
ready  to  move  at  a  "  moment's  notice."  The  order 
was  speedily  complied  with,  and  in  a  very  few 
moments  the  51st  was  on  the  march  towards  the 
shore'  to  again  embark  on  board  of  "  our  clear  old 
Cossack."  To  go,  where  ?  That  last  blow  was  to  be 
struck,  but  where  ?  That  was  the  question.  Ah  !  to 
take  the  Weldon  Railroad,  was  the  opinion  of  the 
majority,  but  the  minority  said  Newborn  ;  not  from 
any  positive  knowledge,  but  from  reason  or  instinct. 
Newbern,  N.  C.,  it  was ! 

After  going  on  board  of  the  Cossack,  the  steamer 
hauled  off  a  short  distance  from  the  island  and 
anchored  until  the  whole  fleet  should  be  ready. 

The  next  day,  (the  4th,)  the  regiment  received  new 
arms  of  a  vastly  superior  quality  over  the  "  old  Har 
per's  Ferry  muskets."  They  were  the  Enfield  rifled 
muskets,  and  were  more  effective  at  one  thousand 
yards  than  the  Harper's  Ferry  were  at  four  hun 
dred  yards.  A  fair  trial  was  obtained  the  next  day, 
at  a  floating  target  of  five  hundred  yards  distant, 
which  was  completely  riddled  by  the  Enfield,  but 
was  not  reached  by  the  Harper's  Ferry. 

After  the  51st  were  embarked,  that  very  and 
always  welcome  visitant  to  a  soldier,  the  mail,  was 


94        HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

sent  on  board.  On  embarking,  a  few  of  the  men 
and  several  officers  were  left  back  on  the  island, 
sick  in  hospitals.  A  most  depressing  rumor  now 
found  its  way  on  board  the  Cossack,  to  the  effect 
that  Gen.  Banks  had  lost  14,000  men  on  the 
Potomac. 

Great  anxiety  was  now  felt  by  the  51st  for  the 
paymaster  to  make  his  appearance  before  starting  on 
another  tour,  but  they  were  disappointed,  as  he  did 
not  corne  for  some  time  thereafter.  Money  now 
began  to  be  at  a  premium,  from  the  fact  that  the 
sound  fishermen  were  catching  large  quantities  of 
shad,  and  selling  at  extremely  low  prices  to  those, 
on  board  of  the  transports,  who  were  fortunate 
to  have  any  money  left  from  their  last  pay  received 
at  Annapolis,  Md.  The  constant  shortness  of  rations 
in  the  expedition  forced  the  men  in  order  to  sustain 
life,  to  purchase  from  the  regimental  sutlers,  who,  to 
their  shame  be  it  said,  took  mean  advantage  of  the 
men's  necessities,  and  charged  ten  prices  for  every 
article  sold.  Many  ma}r  ask  "  why  did  the  men 
pay  it?"  I  would  answer  by  saying  that,  when 
starvation  is  staring  you  in  the  face,  and  hunger  is 
already  gnawing  your  very  vitals  out,  it  does  not 
become  a  matter  of  paltry  dollars  and  cents,  but  of 
health  and  life,  and  further,  at  each  purchase,  the 
buyer  would  feed  on  hope^  that  "  a  good  time  "  might 
soon  turn  up  in  the  Commissary  Department  at  its 
next  issue !  Occasionally  the  soldiers  would  be 
compelled  by  force  of  circumstances,  to  use  an  army 
phrase,  to  "  shut  up  the  eyes  "  of  the  fisherman,  for  a 
couple  of  shad.  The  soldiers  being  on  the  trans 
ports  and  the  fisherman  in  his  batteau,  they  would, 
tell  him  to  "  pass  up  "  a  couple  of  the  fish  for  them 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  95 

to  look  at,  but  the  over-confiding  fisherman  would 
soon  find  "  his  eyes  shut  up  "  effectually,  for  the  sol 
dier  had  disappeared  to  clean  his  fish  and  pay  his 
ten  cents  to  the  cooks  to  fry  them  for  him. 

While  lying  off' the  island  and  before  the  departure 
of  the  fleet,  the  small-pox  began  to  make  its  appear 
ance  in  the  51st,  consequently  once  or  twice  a  day 
the  surgeons  would  come  on  board  to  make  exami 
nations  of  each  individual,  and  if  any  possessed  the 
slightest  symptoms  of  that  much  dreaded  disease, 
they  were  immediately  sent  ashore  to  remain  in  the 
hospitals  until  the  disease  either  developed  itself  or 
it  was  found  that  there  was  no  infection. 

On  the  6th  of  March,  another  of  those  terrible 
storms  swept  over  the  sounds,  which  lasted  till  the 
afternoon  of  the  8th.  No  particular  damage  was 
sustained  by  the  Cossack,  but  great  fears  were  enter 
tained  on  the  7th  for  her  safety ;  both  of  her  heavy 
bow  anchors  were  out,  and  in  the  violence  of  the 
storm,  she  dragged  them  over  a  mile  in  twelve 
minutes. 

This  second  time  on  the  Cossack  was  equallv  as 
bad  as  the  first,  for  want  of  food  and  water.  Had  it 
not  been  for  the  few  shad  purchased  or  "  confiscated," 
the  suffering  by  hunger  by  the  men  would  have  been 
without  its  parallel ;  as  it  was,  it  was  terrible  beyond 
the  power  of  any  pen  to  portray. 

On  Sunday,  March  9th,  1862,  orders  were  issued 
for  the  fleet  to  prepare  to  leave  their  anchorage  for 
Newbern,  N.  C.,  but  General  Burnside  had  received, 
what  was  supposed  by  him  to  be,  reliable  news,  that 
Norfolk,  Va.,  had  been  taken,  and  the  order  to  "  take 
up  the  line  of  movement  "  was  countermanded,  but 
on  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day,  the  orders  to 


96        HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

start  were  re-issued,  consequently  the  fleet  took  its 
departure  for  its  destination  on  Tuesday  morning, 
the  llth,  arriving  at  Hatteras  Inlet  early  in  the  even 
ing  of  the  same  day.  The  day  was  very  rainy  and  the 
men  staid  in  their  berths,  enjoying  themselves  in 
various  amusements,  and  wondering  if  they  would 
ever  again  sit  down  to  a  table  and  ''  get  enough  to 
eat.^ 

On  arriving  at  the  Inlet,  Maj.  Schall  gave  notice 
to  the  men  that  he  would  go  ashore  in  one  hour 
with  a  mail  and  bring  the  return  one.  Nearly  every 
man  sat  down  to  write  his  version  of  his  trials  and 
sufferings.  At  the  expiration  of  the  hour  the  Major 
gathered  up  the  letters,  took  them  ashore  and  re 
turned  with  a  very  large  mail,  much  to  the  gratifica 
tion  of  all.  Half  the  night  was  spent  in  perusing 
letters  and  papers. 

The  morning  of  the  12th  of  March  was  one  of  the 
loveliest  in  nature  —the  broad  bosom  of  the  surround 
ing  waters  lay  as  smooth  as  ice,  and  looked  like  one 
vast  sheet  of  polished  silver.  The  whole  fleet  riding 
at  anchor,  and  everything  wearing  the  appearance  of 
such  calmness  and  quiet,  that  one  would  almost 
persuade  himself  it  was  the  holy  Sabbath  clay  ;  but 
at  8  A.  M.,  the  signal  corps  began  waving  their 
many  flags,  which,  being  interpreted,  meant  "  to 
weigh  anchor  and  be  off;''  in  a  few  minutes  all  was 
bustle  and  excitement,  and  the  fleet  was  again  under 
way,  arriving  at  the  mouth  of  Neuse  Eivei  at  half- 
past  two  P.  M.  same  day,  and  made  a  halt  of  three- 
quarters  of  an  hour,  which  became  necessary  on 
account  of  numerous  columns  of  smoke  ascending 
in  the  air,  on  either  shore,  looking  very  much  as  if 
it  might  be  numberless  rebel  camp-fires,  but  a  couple 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       97 

of  gunboats  reconnoitered  the  shore  and  found  that 
the  columns  of  smoke  were  no  less  than  the  mode 
adopted  by  the  rebels  to  signal  the  approach  of  the 
expedition  to  their  shores.  The  Cossack  started 
once  more  and  made  the  run  with  much  caution, 
the  gunboats  on  the  advance,  and  the  transports  fol 
lowing  in  proper  order — obeying  all  signals  as 
promptly  as  if  the  orders  were  issued  verbally. 
Three  days'  rations  and  sixty  rounds  of  ammunition 
were  issued,  and  every  other  preparation  made  in  case 
of  a  forced  landing  having  to  be  made.  At  night  the 
fleet  anchored  a  few  miles  below  the  mouth  of  Slo- 
cum's  Creek,  and  about  midnight  a  surgeon  came 
on  board  of  the  Cossack  to  deliver  a  lecture,  in 
secrecy,  to  the  band  of  the  51st,  which  was  consti 
tuted  an  ambulance  corps,  in  regard  to  its  duties  on 
the  battle-field.  This  lecture  was  intended  only  for 
the  ears  of  the  ambulance  corps,  consequently  all 
others  were  ordered  off  to  their  quarters,  but  other 
ears  did  hear  the  admonition.  And  of  the  vast  im 
portance  to  a  wounded  soldier  that  it  might  have 
been,  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  lecture  was  not 
delivered  in  the  presence  of  the  assembled  regiment, 
and  as  the  very  able  lecturer  defined  the  only  cor 
rect  mode  of  saving  life,  it  was  necessary  that  all 
should  be  instructed  in  it.  For  instance,  if  the  wound 
was  of  an  artery,  it  was  to  be  tightly  bound  on  the 
side  next  to  the  heart.  If  a  flesh  wound,  where  the 
blood  only  oozed  out,  it  was  to  be  bound  tightly  on 
the  side  of  the  wound  furthest  from  the  heart.  .  The 
reason  for  this  was,  that  the  blood  of  an  artery  comes 
direct  from  the  heart  to  distribute  itself  throughout 
the  human  system,  and  therefore  it  is  important  to 
prevent  it  from  reaching  the  wound,  consequently  to 


98        HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

bandage  between  the  heart  and  the  wound,  so  as  to 
stop  the  flow  of  blood,  will  prevent  bleeding  to 
death.  The  reason  for  bandaging  below  the  flesh 
wound  was,  the  smaller  blood  vessels  only  served  to 
carry  the  blood  back  to  the  heart  after  being  dis 
tributed  by  the  arteries,  and  tightly  bandaging 
the  wound  on  the  lower  side  also  hinders  the  blood 
from  finding  egress  through  the  wound,  and  pre 
vents  fainting  or  death  from  loss  of  blood.  If 
wounded  in  any  part  of  the  body,  where  bandages 
could  not  by  unskilled  hands  be  effectually  applied, 
the  corps  was  instructed  to  fill  the  cavity  well  with 
lint,  rags,  or  pocket  handkerchief,  or  whatever  else 
could  be  speedily  brought  into  requisition  on  a  bat 
tle-field.  The  lecturer  spoke  upwards  of  half  an 
hour,  and  in  that  time  imparted  a  vast  deal  of  very 
valuable  information.  Why  it  was  delivered  secretly 
can  only  be  conjectured,  but  the  supposition  was, 
and  is  yet,  that  if  delivered  publicly  it  might  affect 
the  nerves  of  those  who  would  keep  the  thing  in 
their  mind's  eye  continually,  while  going  into  battle, 
and  perhaps  make  them  falter !  If  that  was  the  cor 
rect  theory,  all  that  is  necessary  to  say  is,  that  the 
surgeon  did  not  know  the  material  of  which  the  51st 
was  made.  It  cannot  be  denied  but  that  cowards 
are  to  be  found  in  all  large  organizations,  and  the 
name  of  a  battle  was,  and  is  sufficient,  to  make 
them,  to  use  an  army's  vulgar  phrase,  "  shyster  out," 
but  the  51st  contained  as  few,  if  not  fewer,  shysters, 
than  any  other  regiment  extant. 

On  Thursday,  13th,  soon  after  daylight,  the  Cos 
sack  ran  in  as  close  to  the  mouth  of  Slocum's  Creek, 
eighteen  miles  below  Newbern,  N.  C.,  as  she  could  get, 
and  the  51st  disembarked  at  7  A.  M.  The  gunboats 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       99 

shelled  the  shore  for  about  five  miles,  during  which 
time  the  entire  body  of  troops  composing  the  expe 
dition  disembarked.  Thousands  of  them  were  so 
impatient  to  once  more  set  their  feet  upon  land,  that 
they  would  not  wait  to  be  taken  off  in  small  boats, 
but  voluntarily  jumped  from  their  vessels  into  the 
water,  which  was  to  many  of  them  up  to  their  necks, 
and  waded  to  the  shore,  a  distance  of  from  three  hun 
dred  to  five  hundred  yards.  This  disembarkation 
was  so  quietly  conducted  that  one-half  of  the  troops 
were  on  terra  firma  before  all  the  men  knew  what 
was  going  on.  The  shelling  of  the  woods  by  the 
gunboats  disturbed,  and  brought  to  light  a  rebel 
cavalry  encampment,  about  five  miles  above  where 
the  troops  landed.  After  the  troops  had  landed, 
General  Burnside  exhorted  the  men  to  throw  nothing 
away,  as  they  were  now  where  they  could  not  replace 
anything  if  lost. 

By  8  A.  M.  the  column  was  on  the  march,  in  a 
drenching  rain  and  through  the  muddiest  mud  ever 
invented,  being  knee-deep  and  of  a  black,  unctuous, 
slippery  character.  After  marching  five  miles  towards 
Newbern,  and  hugging  the  shore  of  the  Neuse  river, 
the  51st  came  on  the  camp  of  the  rebel  cavalry 
which  the  gunboats  had  routed  precipitately.  Every 
thing  lay  around  in  magnificent  disorder ;  fires  still 
burning,  breakfasts  cooking,  and  some  served  up  and 
partly  partaken  of,  showing  the  complete  surprise 
by  the  landing  of  several  unannounced  61-pound 
shells  in  the  very  heart  of  their  barracks.  Tired  as 
the  "  Yankees"  were,  they  took  their  five  minutes 
rest  to  "  go  through  "  the  baggage  of  the  rebel  offi 
cers  and  the  "  knappies  "  of  the  men.  After  ran 
sacking  the  camp,  the  51st  was  about  "  falling  in," 


100      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

when,  unfortunately  for  the  51st's  boys,  a  marine 
battery  of  six  pieces,  that  had  also  landed  at  Slo- 
cum's  Creek,  halted  in  front  of  the  regiment,  for 
the  marines  were  worn  out  in  pulling  and  tugging  to 
get  their  artillery  and  caissons  along. 

Lieut.  Col.  Thos.  S.  Bell  was  quietly  sitting  on  his 
horse  when  an  orderly  rode  up  to  him  and  presented 
him  with  an  order,  detailing  the  regiment  nearest  to  the 
battery  to  assist  in  bringing  it  along.  Consequently 
the  51st  being  unfortunately  in  that  "fix"  had  to 
"  fall  in  "  and  man  the  rope.  If  marching  with  a 
knapsack,  sixty  rounds  of  ammunition,  a  heavy  rifle- 
musket,  three  days'  rations  in  haversacks,  and  other 
paraphernalia  of  war,  fatigued  them  ;  what  else,  than 
exhaust  them,  would  carrying  all  that  and  dragging 
a  heavy  gun  and  caisson  fall  of  shot  and  shell  thir 
teen  miles  in  the  remainder  of  the  day,  do  ?  The 
rnud  was  bad  enough  to  march  over,  but  when  pul 
ling  on  the  rope  it  would  cause  the  men  to  sink  in 
two  or  three  inches  deeper.  The  regiment  was  di 
vided  into  three  reliefs,  each  relief  taking  its  turn 
at  the  rope  half  an  hour  at  a  time.  The  march  now 
became  not  only  painfully  laborious  but  extremely 
slow,  the  gun  carriages  sinking  in  the  mud  up  to  the 
hubs.  Rain  pouring  down,  clothing  dripping  wet, 
the  air  sultry  and  "  rnurky,"  and  every  thing  seeming 
to  conspire  to  dishearten  that  noble  band  of  patriots' 
who  toiled  and  tugged  to  get  the  artillery  along  and 
keep  up  with  the  advancing  troops  ;  but  its  labors 
were  not  confined  alone  to  the  pulling  of  the  six 
guns  belonging  to  the  marines,  for  on  the  landing 
of  the  51st,  Capt.  Bennett,  of  the  Cossack,  had  two 
splendid  twelve  pound  Wiard  rifled  guns  (steel)  on 
his  ship,  and  was  very  anxious  to  participate  with 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      101 

the  51st  in  an  engagement,  therefore  he  made  ap 
plication  to  Gen.  Burnside  to  be  permitted  to  take 
one  of  his  guns  ashore  and  go  along  with  the  51st; 
in  fact  he  asked  permission  to  take  both  guns,  but 
only  one  was  granted.  Before  the  51st  disembarked, 
Capt.  Bennett  had  his  gun  ashore,  accompanied  by 
eighteen  of  his  best  men  well  armed  with  their 
boarding  pikes,  cutlasses,  and  heavy  navy  revolvers  ; 
but  owing  to  the  great  depth  of  mud,  his  men  were 
overtaken  by  the  51st  about  six  miles  from  the  land 
ing  point,  completely  worn  out  and  borne  down  to 
the  ground,  or  rather  mire,  from  sheer  exhaustion. 
On  the  olst  coming  up  with  Capt.  Bennett,  it  found 
him  scarcely  able  to  utter  a  word,  from  cheering  his 
men  on  in  their  noble  work  and  pulling  at  the  rope 
himself,  he  became  so  hoarse  that  articulation  had 
nearly  ceased,  but  the  sight  of  his  regiment,  as  he 
always  called  the  51st,  added  joy  to  his  overloaded 
heart,  for  he  knew  they  would  help  him  if  he  would 
only  say  that  he  needed  them ;  but  the  first  party  of 
the  51st  that  reached  him  was  one  of  the  three  re 
liefs,  that  had  just  been  relieved,  and  being  jaded 
nearly  to  death,  they  did  not  feel  like  offering  their 
services  to  help  to  pull  a  much  heavier  gun  than 
that  of  which  they  had  just  dropped  the  rope.  After 
passing  a  few  remarks  with  Bennett  and  his  men, 
they  started  to  pass  on,  but  Bennett,  who  from  a 
little  rest  could  talk  plain  enough  to  be  understood, 
asked  them  to  help  him  along  with  his  gun.  At 
this  juncture  the  remainder  came  up  and  Capt.  Ben 
nett  begged  them  to  help  him  along,  but  riot  prop 
erly  understanding  their  answer  he  yelled  out  as 
loud  as  he  was  able,  "  Men  !  do  you  want  me  to  com 
mit  suicide  ?  for  I  swear  if  I  can't  get  help  from  you, 


102     HISTOEY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

boys,  to  get  my  gun  up,  I'll  blow  out  my  brains 
here !''  That  appeal  to  their  love  for  him  had  its 
effect,  and  for  the  balance  of  the  march  they  had 
seven  guns  to  get  through  the  mud.  However,  by 
daylight  next  morning  the  51st  had  got  all  the  guns 
and  caissons  up  to  within  five  hundred  yards  of  the 
enemy's  works  around  Newbern.  These  seven 
piece's  of  artillery  were  the  only  field  pieces  that 
the  expedition  had  on  land,  and  for  their  great  aid, 
especially  Capt.  Bennett's  gun,  none  ever  regretted 
the  enormous  amount  of  labor  bestowed  by  them  in 
getting  the  guns  up ;  the  men  often  remarked  after 
the  capture  of  Newbern,  that  if  they  had  thought 
that  Bennett  and  his  gun  would  have  rendered  such 
incalculable  service  they  would  have  pulled  with  a 
much  better  heart ;  now  that  it  was  over  they  could 
look  the  circumstance  squarely  in  the  face  and  ac 
knowledge  that  only  for  the  unceasing  perseverance 
of  Bennett  and  his  noble  tars,  the  gun  could  never 
have  been  brought  up,  and  all  became  fully  satisfied 
in  making  "government  mules"  of  themselves  for 
the  time  being. 

At  9  o'clock,  P.  M.,  the  army  halted  for  the 
night  along  the  roadside  within  a  mile  or  there 
abouts  of  the  enemy's  pickets,  where  all  laid  down 
in  the  mud  and  rain  and  enjoyed  a  few  hours  of  the 
sweetest  sleep  ever  enjoyed  by  mortals. 

At  2  A.  M.,  of  the  14th,  the  army  was  again 
in  motion,  the  rain  coming  down  in  torrents, 
and  all  hands  d g  all  hands,  rebels,  every 
thing  and  everybody,  as  well  as  the  weather,  cli 
mate,  and  State.  However,  their  ill  humor  only 
served  to  put  them  in  more  determined  fighting 
trim.  The  51st  again  seized  hold  of  the  long  ropes 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      103 

of  their  old  friends  which  stuck  to  them  as  close  as 
the  mod  of  which  they  could  not  get  rid.  They 
dragged  the  cannon  up  as  close  to  the  enemy's 
works  as  it  was  prudent  to  go  while  it  was  yet  so 
dark.  It  was  only  a  short  time  till  daylight,  and 
some  laid  down  in  the  mud  and  rain  to  enjoy  another 
short  nap,  while  others,  looking  out  for  the  inner 
man,  busied  themselves  in  making  a  cup  of  coffee 
or  cooking  something  to  eat  for  a  breakfast ;  very  few 
cared  about  their  rations ;  rest  and  sleep  were  much 
more  needed  at  that  time. 

At  6  A.  M.,  Col.  Hartranft  gave  the  command  to 
"  fall  in,"  which  was  complied  with  as  promptly  as  the 
circumstances  would  permit.  It  took  the  men  some 
time  to  get  themselves  gathered  up.  From  their 
laborious  toil  of  the  day  and  night  before,  perspir 
ing  and  drenched  with  rain  to  the  skin,  young  and 
old  were  as  sore  and  stiff  in  their  joints  and  muscles 
as  a  foundered  horse,  and  they  moved  into  line  as  if 
they  were  walking  on  eggs  and  afraid  of  their  legs 
breaking.  By  the  time  the  regiment  got  into  line 
on  the  railroad  the  right  of  the  column  had  engaged 
the  enemy,  and  the  musketry  was  terrific.  Col. 
Hartranft  brought  his  regiment  to  a  "front  "  on  the 
railroad,  and  ordered  his  men  to  discharge  their 
guns  and  reload  with  fresh  ammunition.  Although 
the  guns  had  only  been  loaded  the  day  before,  yet 
the  charges  had  become  so  wet  that  not  over  five 
per  cent,  of  their  pieces  would  go  off  on  the  first 
trial  ;  this  was  occasioned  by  having  to  pull  up  the 
guns  the  day  before  and  no  care  could  be  taken  to 
keep  their  own  guns  in  order.  However,  only  a  few 
moments  were  lost  in  making  things  all  right,  and 
as  soon  as  that  was  done,  Lieut.  Morris,  aid  on  Burn- 


104     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

side's  staff,  came  up  and  delivered  orders  to  Col. 
Hartranft  to  take  bis  men  in.  In  less  time  than  it 
takes  to  tell  it,  Col.  Hartranft  took  his  regiment  into 
battle  on  the  "  double  quick."  It  proceeded  up  the 
railroad  to  within  plain  view  of  the  enemy's  fortifi 
cations,  then  filing  left  into  a  rough  piece  of  woods 
on  the  "  double  quick "  over  ditches,  quagmires, 
swamps,  creeks,  hill  and  dale,  until  it  came  within 
seventy-five  yards  of  a  three-gun  rebel  battery, 
where  it  halted  and  took  up  a  gap  on  the  left  of 
the  9th  New  Jersey  and  the  right  of  the  51st  New 
York.  After  taking  its  position  it  was  commanded 
to  "lie  down!"  It  had  scarcely  done  so  when  a 
shower  of  grape,  canister,  shrapnel  and  "  minies  " 
came  over  their  heads  in  a  perfect  storm.  The 
enemy  had  seen  the  regiment  coming  in  and  they 
did  their  utmost  to  drive  it  out  of  its  position,  but 
Col.  Hartranft  "couldn't  see  it"  and  therefore  was 
determined  to  stay  there,  warmly  seconded  by  his 
men.  While  lying  there  they  were  resting,  and  the 
galling  fire  did  not  disturb  them  a  bit  more  than  had 
the  balls  been  fired  in  the  air,  for  after  lying  there 
half  an  hour  awaiting  orders  to  either  open  fire  or 
charge  bayonets  one-half  of  the  men  had  fallen  into 
a  sound  sleep.  On  the  right  of  the  brigade  to  which 
the  51st  was  attached,  Capt.  Bennett  was  posted  with 
his  steel  Wiard  gun,  doing  terrible  execution  at  each 
discharge.  His  gunners,  Mr.  Stroud  and  Mr.  Wil 
son,  were  such  adepts  in  ranging  their  gun  that  they 
dismounted  three  of  the  enemy's  guns  in  succession 
with  their  first  three  shots  and  rendered  a  fourth 
gun  useless  with  their  fifth.  This  terrible  execution 
by  these  gunners  exasperated  the  rebels  to  such  an 
extent  as  to  cause  them  to  concentrate  all  their 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  105 

available  artillery  fire  on  Capt.  Bennett's  gun,  for 
the  purpose  of  driving  it  away  from  its  position.  The 
solid  shot  and  shell  fairly  rained  into  them,  but 
Bennett,  Stroud,  and  Wilson  said  they  would  die 
then  and  there  before  they  would  have  it  said  they 
were  driven  away.  The  battle  now  raged  most 
furiously,  and  for  about  one  hour  it  was  impossible 
to  tell  which  were  to  be  the  victors.  During  this 
terrible  suspense  of  the  fate  of  the  day,  poor  Wilson 
fell  at  the  side  of  his  gun  mortally  wounded,  a 
twenty-four  pound  shell  striking  his  thigh  and  sev 
ering  his  leg  from  his  body,  fie  was  immediately 
carried  to  the  rear,  and  then  on  board  of  the  Cos 
sack,  but  died  soon  after.  Thus  was  gone  one  noble, 
self-sacrificing  spirit,  who  should  have  lived  to  see  his 
patriotic  endeavors  brought  to  a  peaceful  and  happy 
termination.  When  asked,  after  being  wounded, 
"  if  he  wasn't  sorry  that  he  had  volunteered  to 
go  ashore  with  his  gun,"  he  opened  his  eyes  and  re 
plied,  "  I  know  I  must  die !  but  should  I  recover 
and  the  war  not  over,  I  will  volunteer  my  other  leg 
as  I  did  this  if  I  can  only  sell  it  as  dear,  for  I  know  I 
knocked  them  ! !  "  Peace  to  his  ashes !  and  may  his 
image  never  be  driven  from  our  sight! 

About  noon  the  battle  began  to  oscillate,  one 
moment  victory  would  hover  over  the  Union  army, 
the  next  over  the  enemy,  when  Burnside  ordered 
the  extreme  right  of  his  line  to  charge,  aided  by  the 
gunboats  on  the  works  nearest  to  the  Neuse  river. 
It  proved  a  success ;  but  with  fearful  slaughter  to 
the  24th  and  27th  Massachusetts.  As  soon  as  the  as 
sault  was  made,  Burnside  dispatched  one  of  his  aids, 
Lieut.  Morris,  to  Col.  Hartranft,  with  orders  to  charge 

on  the  enemy's  works  directly  in  front  of  the  51st. 

0 


106     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Lieut.  Morris  on  coming  up  to  the  regiment  inquired 
for  Col.  Hartranft,  (who  was  on  the  extreme  right  of 
the  51st,  surveying  with  his  eagle  eye  the  nature  of 
the  ground  in  case  he  should  make  a  charge,)  but 
in  reply  was  answered  "he's  somewheres  about." 
Lieut.  Morris  then  stated  that  Burnside  had  sent 
orders  for  the  51st  P.  V.  to  make  a  bayonet  charge 
on  the  works  in  their  front,  and  if  it  would  follow 
him  he  would  lead.  The  whole  regiment  instantly 
sprang  to  their  feet,  and  Morris  giving  the  command 
to  '•  charge  "  with  a  flourish  of  his  sword,  the  regi 
ment  started  on  a  "  full  run."  Hartranft  had  evidently 
been  watching  the  movement  with  a  jealous  eye,  and 
ere  the  regiment  had  gone  twenty-five  yards,  Col. 
Hartranft's  voice  was  heard  commanding  a  "halt."  As 
quick  as  the  flash  of  a  gun  the  line  halted,  and  Hart 
ranft  breaking  through  it,  ran  up  to  Morris  and 
passionately  asked  him,  "  what  in  the  h-Il  do  you 
mean?  I  command  this  regiment  and  if  a  charge  is  to 
be  made  I'll  make  it."  A  hasty  explanation  ensued, 
and  the  regiment  fell  back  to  its  former  position  and 
lay  down,  much  to  the  gratification  of  the  men,  who 
wanted  to  be  led  in  a  charge  by  one  of  their  own 
officers  only.  In  a  few  moments  Col.  Hartranft  saw 
a  slight  advantage  might  be  gained  in  an  assault  by 
a  few  men  on  another  part  of  the  enemy's  works, 
and  he  ordered  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  to  take  the  left  wing 
of  the  51st  P.  Y.  and  make  the  charge.  The  enco 
miums  passed  by  the  newspaper  reporters  on  Col. 
Hartranft  and  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  for  this  brilliant 
achievement,  leave  it  needless  for  my  pen  to  dot 
their  praise.  Shortly  after  Col.  Hartranft  gave 
orders  to  "  rise  up,"  "forward,  double  quick,"  when 
in  an  instant  seemingly  Col.  Hartranft  and  the  color 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      107 

bearer,  were  planting  the  colors  of  the  51st  P.  V.  in 
the  three  gun  battery,  that  had  been  carried  at  the 
point  of  his  bayonets,  bat  the  51st  P.  V.  had  only 
fairly  got  into  the  fort,  when  the  51st  New  York 
came  rushing  in  over  the  ramparts,  and  planted  their 
colors  also  on  the  left  wing  of  the  works.  From 
some  unaccountable  reason  the  reporter  for  the  New 
York  Herald  gave  Col.  Hartranft  the  credit  of 
taking  the  fort,  but  made  a  blunder  in  giving  the 
51st  New  York  credit  for  planting  their  colors  first 
on  the  captured  works.  The  ground  passed  over  by 
the  51st  P.  V.  was  decidedly  a  rough  piece,  if  that 
will  explain  its  ruggedness.  The  captured  fort  lay 
about  midway  up  a  very  steep  hill,  the  51st  was 
posted  also  on  a  corresponding  hill,  directly  in  front 
of  the  fort.  Between  the  fort  and  where  the  regi 
ment  lay,  was  a  very  deep  swampy  ravine,  the 
bottom  of  this  ravine  had  the  water  dammed  up  to 
the  depth  of  thirty  inches  and  was  about  thirty  or 
forty  yards  wide.  Huge  trees  had  been  felled  by 
the  rebels,  and  thrown  lengthwise  and  crosswise  of 
the  ravine,  the  branches  were  lopped  off  in  such 
a  way  as  to  form  an  almost  impregnable  abattis. 
Over  this  place  is  where  the  charge  was  made,  and 
had  it  been  made  at  the  time  that  Lieut.  Morris  at 
tempted  to  lead,  not  more  than  one  soldier  out  of  ten, 
of  the  51st  could  have  survived  to  have  told  the 
tale;  but  Col.  Hartranft,  with  his  keen  foresight  and 
sound  military  judgment,  knew  just  the  precise  time 
to  make  the  charge  and  how  to  make  it  a  success. 
The  total  loss  of  the  51st  was  as  follows:  killed, 
none ;  wounded,  ten  ;  among  whom  were  privates 
Owen  Kex  and  Wm.  W.  Wiedner,  of  Co.  D;  mis 
sing,  none.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  names  of 


108      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

the  others  have  been  mislaid.  Four  o'clock  of  the 
afternoon  of  Friday,  March  14th,  found  Burnside  in 
undisputed  possession  of  the  defiant  city  of  ISTew- 
berri  and  all  its  formidable  fortifications.  The 
enemy  fleeing  in  wild  confusion  towards  Groldsboro' 
and  Kingston,  having  left  everything  behind  them 
in  the  way  of  private  property,  so  as  not  to  encum 
ber  themselves  with  baggage,  so  eager  were  the 
chivalry  to  lose  sight  of  the  despicable  Yankees. 
However,  in  their  retreat  they  had  set  fire  to  the 
splendid  railroad  bridge  which  spanned  the  Trent 
river  opposite  the  city,  cutting  off  the  remnant  of 
their  retreating  army,  as  well  as  preventing  any 
further  pursuit  by  the  elated  victors.  The  retreating 
rebels  who  were  cut  off  from  their  comrades  by  the 
burning  bridge,  were  compelled  to  follow  the  south 
shore  of  the  Trent  river,  in  order  to  give  as  much 
distance  between  them  and  their  pursuers  as  possible, 
and  in  doing  so,  they  had  to  swim  across  Brice's 
creek,  about  three  miles  above  the  city.  Many  of 
the  retreating  foe  found  a  watery  grave,  for  the 
stream  was  a  deep,  sluggish  one,  of  about  125  or  150 
feet  wide,  and  full  fifty  feet  in  depth.  From  what 
information  could  be  obtained  from  the  negroes,  at 
least  one  hundred  rebels  were  drowned  in  attempt 
ing  to  cross  the  creek,  either  from  not  knowing  how 
to  swim,  or  from  fright  and  the  excitement  of  the 
chase.  Hundreds  had  been  captured  on  the  battle 
field,  the  51st  capturing  seventeen  prisoners  and 
three  heavy  guns,  when  it  made  the  charge  on  the 
fort,  besides  large  quantities  of  small  arms  and 
private  property.  The  ground  in  and  around  the 
rebel  works  was  literally  covered  with  the  dead,  the 
dying,  and  the  wounded,  proving  the  stubbornness  of 
the  sanguinary  conflict. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    V.  LUNTEERS.  109 

The  total  number  of  effective  Union  men  was 
7,800,  and  that  of  the  rebel  force  was  computed  by 
a  rebel  officer  at  19,300,  showing  tremendous  odds 
for  the  Union  men  to  contend  against.  Independent 
of  their  numerical  strength,  they  possessed  at  least 
fifteen  field  and  siege  guns  to  one  of  the  Union  army. 
The  Union  gunboats  were  of  immense  service  in  de 
ciding  the  conflict.  After  silencing  all  the  water 
batteries,  they  were  enabled  to  pass  the  obstructions 
in  the  river  and  lend  an  able  hand  to  the  land  forces 
in  routing  the  enemy  from  their  almost  impregnable 
strongholds. 

After  cessation  of  hostilities,  the  negroes  began 
to  venture  to  visit  the  Union  army,  and  many 
laughable  scenes  occurred  between  them  and  the 
"  Boys  in  Blue."  One  old  darkey  being  asked  what 
made  the  rebels  run  so,  when  the  Yankees  had  come 
to  fight  them,  replied  "  that  dey  stuck  it  out,  until 
your  folks  began  to  frow  (throw)  dem  mighty  rotten 
shot  (shells)  from  de  big  gunboats.  I  tell  ye's  dey 
made  dem  tote  dernselves  out  de  way,  by  golly  dey 
did !"  Another  one  asked  a  negress  what  she 
thought  of  the  Yankees,  "Why,"  said  she,  "I  find 
dey  looks  like  our  people,  an  I  said  so  yesterday 
when  I  seed  you  pass  our  house,  for  my  massa  had 
always  tole  us  dat  de  Yankees  wa'r  great  big  people, 
tall  as  dat  pine  tree  dar,  wid  one  eye  in  de  centre  ob 
der  for'ed  and  one  in  de  back  of  dar  heds,  and  dat  if 
dey  got  a  holt  ob  a  "nigger,  dey  jist  munched  dem  up 
wid  dar  grate  big  teef,  and  dat  would  be  de  last  of 
de  coon.  Why,  my  massa  said  dat  your  teef  (teeth) 
was  as  long  as  der  arms,  and  wid  one  crunch  would 
bite  a  boss  in  two,  and  a  heap  of  ocler  things,  he 
tole  us  'bout  you,  but  I  guess  he  only  tole  us  dat  to 


110     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

try  to  fritin  us  so   dat  we  wouldn't  run   away  from 
him  and  come  to  you  folkses." 

As  soon  after  the  battle  as  it  could  be  done,  the 
51st  marched  up  the  railroad,  near  to  the  still  burn 
ing  bridge,  and  bivouacked  for  the  night  on  the 
banks  of  the  Neuse  river,  where  the  Trent  river 
empties  its  inky  stream,  and  after  hastily  preparing 
a  sort  of  a  supper,  the  men,  spreading  their  blankets 
for  a  night's  repose  on  the  wet  ground,  ]aid  them 
selves  down  to  sleep,  without  any  other  covering  thar. 
the  broad  canopy  of  watery  clouds  and  a  drenching 
rain,  which  continued  to  pour  down  with  unrelenting 
fury  all  night ;  but  wet  and  mud  disturbed  them 
not  in  their  sleep,  for  being  worn  down  and  their 
strength  exhausted  by  the  fatigue  of  the  day  and 
night  previous,  and  by  the  intense  excitement  of  that 
day,  they  fell  asleep  as  soon  nearly  as  their  heads 
were  on  a  level  with  their  heels. 

The  next  morning,  Saturday,  the  15th,  the  rain 
continuing  to  fall  and  the  men  in  their  wet  clothing, 
things  were  about  as  uncomfortable  as  if  gotten 
up  expressly  to  order,  none  of  them  having  any 
tents  or  rubber  blankets.  Wood  and  everything 
else  soaking  wet,  it  was  a  long  time  before  a  fire 
could  be  kindled  to  lend  its  genial  warmth  to  dry 
their  clothing,  to  make  a  cup  of  coftee,  to  cook  a 
piece  of  salt  junk,  or  to  fry  fat  pork  for  their  break 
fasts.  Had  the  little  <(  shelter  "  or  D'Abri  tents  been 
known  of  in  those  days,  what'  an  addition  they 
would  have  been  to  the  protection  and  comfort  of 
the  marching  soldier.  Nothing  of  the  kind  was  used 
in  the  early  days  of  the  rebellion,  and  the  tired  and 
wet  soldier  was  contented  to  lay  himself  down  to 
sleep  in  the  ditches  on  the  roadsides,  in  rain  and 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  Ill 

mud,  without  a  thought  of  any  other  protection 
against  rheumatism  and  the  inclemency  of  the 
weather  than  his  blanket,  if  he  was  fortunate  enough 
to  have  one  with  him.  During  the  day  quarters 
had  been  assigned  to  the  51st,  about  one  and  a  half 
miles  from  Newborn,  in  a  lot  of  the  filthiest  rebel 
barracks  ever  met  with,  consequently  by  nightfall 
it  was  moved  to  its  new  quarters,  where  out  of  the 
rain  they  had  fire-places,  in  which  to  make  fires  to 
warm  themselves  and  cook ;  but  very  little  cooking 
could  be  done,  for  on  landing  at  Sloe  urn's  creek,  they 
had  only  three  days'  rations  in  their  haversacks,  and 
being  three  days  and  two  nights  exposed  to  a  con 
tinuous  rain,  their  provisions  became  spoiled  and 
the  most  had  to  be  thrown  away.  Many  had  to  go  to 
bed  supperless,  but  few  to  sleep,  for  the  bunks  were 
literally  alive  with  vermin,  left  behind  bv  the  re 
treating  rebels.  On  Sunday,  16th,  the  regiment 
were  without  a  morsel  of  rations,  excepting  a  little 
raw  pork,  that  had  been  discovered  in  a  deserted 
barrack  in  a  rebel  officer's  mess  chest,  that  had  been 
left  behind.  So  eager  were  the  men  to  eat  it,  that  it 
was  devoured  raw,  for  they  could  not  wait  to  cook  it. 

Tired  as  the  men  were,  they  could  not  refrain  from 
foraging  the  country,  and  met  with  considerable 
success.  They  brought  in  large  quantities  of  various 
kinds  of  food,  also  some  of  the  finest  horses  of  which 
North  Carolina  could  boast,  with  sulkies  and  car 
riages,  and  costly  harness.  One  splendid  horse  and 
carriage  were  captured  by  Sergeant  W.  F.  Campbell, 
of  Co.  H. 

Sunday,  the  16th,  was  occupied  in  putting  the 
arms  in  order,  and  a  general  cleaning  of  all  the  ac 
coutrements,  which  being  done,  the  boys  visited  all 


112     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

the  rebel  fortifications  on  the  shore  of  the  Neuse, 
and  the  battle-ground.  Large  numbers  of  the  dead 
of  both  armies  still  lay  around  unburied.  Horses 
laid  very  thick  on  the  ground,  and  in  piles ;  one 
pile  contained  seventy-three  carcasses  of  rebel  artil 
lery  horses,  and  close  by  it  lay  sixty- five  dead  rebs. 

Some  time  in  the  afternoon  of  the  day  of  battle, 
D.  P.  Bible,  1st  Lieut,  and  Adjutant  of  the  olst  P.  V., 
had  occasion  to  visit  ISTewbern  ;  and  while  there,  he, 
in  company  with  several  officials,  visited  a  number 
of  deserted  houses,  and  found  what  purported  to  be 
old  wine  in  one  of  them.  Although  very  chary 
about  tasting  it,  at  last  he  did,  and  finding  it  very  pal 
atable,  his  suspicions  of  it  containing  poison  were 
soon  dispelled.  He  only  took  a  very  small  quantity, 
when  he  was  seized  with  strong  symptoms  of  being 
poisoned.  Medical  aid  was  called  in,  and  by  skilful 
treatment  his  life  was  placed  out  of  jeopardy,  but  he 
lay  in  great  agony  for  several  weeks,  as  well  as  in 
great  danger  of  his  life.  This  occurrence  served  as 
a  salutary  lesson  to  all,  and  warned  the  soldiers  from 
placing  too  much  confidence  in  any  thing  they  should 
find  that  had  been  left  behind  by  the  rebel  citizens. 
Pies,  cakes,  preserves,  wines,  and  liquors,  had  been 
poisoned  to  a  great  extent  by  the  rabid  secessionists 
on  learning  the  closeness  of  the  Union  forces  to  their 
city ;  and  believing  in  the  ultimate  capture  of  their 
town,  they  were  in  hopes  of  taking  a  few  more 
"Yankee  lives,"  even  should  they  not  be  present  to 
see  their  victims. 

On  Monday,  17th,  Col.  Hartranft  issued  orders 
to  the  regiment,  early  in  the  morning,  to  get  them 
selves  in  readiness  for  a  march  into  the  country,  and 
to  take  nothing  with  them  but  their  arms,  ammuni- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.      113 

tion,  accoutrements,  and  plenty  of  salt.  The  latter 
was  about  all  they  could  take  in  the  way  of  rations. 
The  boys  had  not  been  informed  why  they  were  to 
take  salt  with  them,  but  they  easily  guessed,  and 
consequently  took  all  they  had,  which  was  but  very 
little.  At  ten  A.  M.,  the  regiment  formed  on  the 
color  line,  and  soon  thereafter  was  on  the  march; 
Col.  Hartranft  and  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  leading  the  column 
on  horseback,  Major  Schall  and  the  staff  bringing 
up  the  rear.  The  regiment  marched  out  about  ten 
miles  from  Newbern  to  the  large  plantation  of  a 
Peter  G.  Evans.  The  following  extract  from  a  pri 
vate  letter  gives  a  pretty  correct  account:  "  We  went 
along  a  road  that  was  new  to  all  of  us,  about  four 
miles,  where  it  ended  very  abruptly  at  a  breastwork 
thrown  up  across  it  by  the  rebels.  (There  were 
none  but  our  own  regiment  on  this  scout.)  As  soon 
as  Co.  A,  Capt.  Wm.  J.  Bolton,  arrived  at  the  works, 
a  halt  ensued,  and  the  regiment  took  a  survey  in 
front  of  the  battery  for  half  a  mile.  The  enemy  had 
cut  down  a  number  of  large  trees,  and  felled  them 
across  the  road.  A  bridge,  which  spanned  a  small, 
but  deep  creek,  had  been  torn  up,  but  our  pioneers 
very  soon  cleared  off  the  fallen  timber,  and  relaid 
the  bridge,  which  occupied  a  few  minutes  only,  and 
then  the  line  moved  off  through  mud  and  swamps, 
and  came  out  on  the  boundary  of  a  four  thousand 
acre  cotton  plantation,  belonging  to  Peter  Gr.  Evans. 
We  found  on  the  place  ninety  slaves,  large  quanti 
ties  of  cotton,  some  of  which  was  in  bales,  some  loose, 
some  in  the  press,  and  some  in  the  gin ;  also,  a  large 
number  of  horses  and  cattle,  175  hogs,  50  goats,  25 
mules,  75  ploughs,  a  great  many  carts,  saw-mills, 

flouring-mills,   with  a  great  quantity  of  flour  and 

6* 


114     HISTOBY    OF   THE    FIFTY-PIBST    BEGIMENT 

corn  meal  in  them,  and  about  4,000  bushels  of  corn, 
all  of  which  we  took  possession  of. 

u  We  arrived  at  this  place  just  at  sundown;  and 
when  we  halted  for  camping  purposes,  there  was  not 
a  dry  thread  on  any  of  us,  from  perspiration,  and 
fording  streams,  and  wading  through  swamps. 

"  We  soon  found  out  the  sweet  potatoes,  which 
were  near  a  mile  from  where  we  bivouacked.  Evans 
had  about  1,000  bushels  of  them  buried  in  three  dif 
ferent  holes. 

"  We  stacked  our  arms,  and  made  a  large  number 
of  fires,  killed  20  hogs  and  2  bullocks,  and  soon  had 
something  to  eat.  I  had  a  better  supper  than  I  have 
had  for  a  long  time.  I  had  a  tin  cup  of  coffee  and  a 
large  piece  of  fresh  ham,  which  I  cooked  by  running 
a  stick  through  it,  and  holding  it  over  the  fire  until 
done ;  and  having  salt  with  me,  I  ate  until  I  felt  sick. 
I  then  hunted  up  a  bunch  of  cotton,'  and  lay  down 
in  my  wet  clothing,  and  slept  like  a  top.  The  next 
morning,  at  ten  o'clock,  we  loaded  up  the  cotton  and 
other  things,  and  left  for  our  barracks,  where  we 
arrived  just  before  night;  but  I  had  a  good  breakfast 
of  roasted  sweet  potatoes  and  coffee,  and  I  feel  now, 
after  getting  a  couple  of  good  meals,  as  if  I  was  a 
new  man. 

"  This  Evans  is  a  rebel  captain,  and  was  in  the 
battle  last  Friday.  He  got  wounded,  was  taken 
prisoner,  and  died  yesterday." 

The  next  day,  (19th,)  after  the  regiment  had  re 
turned  to  its  quarters,  was  spent  by  the  boys  in  rest 
ing  themselves,  and  talking  over  their  trip  of  the 
day  before,  and  visiting  the  captured  water  batteries. 

Thursday,  the  20th,  was  another  rainy  day ;  but 
a  large  number  of  the  boys  obtained  passes,  and 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  115 

went  over  to  Newbern.  It  is  a  very  ancient  looking 
city,  with  considerable  thrift  and  stately  appearance. 
Most  of  the  private  residences  being  abandoned  by 
their  former  owners  or  occupants,  those  of  the  most 
imposing  and  aristocratic  appearance  were  occupied 
by  our  generals  and  their  staffs.  The  city  abounds 
in  plenty  of  shade  trees,  which  were  out  in  full  bloom, 
reminding  one  of  the  months  of  May  and  June  in 
Pennsylvania.  At  one  end  of  the  city  is  Cedar 
Grove  Cemetery,  of  which  the  most  notable  feature 

is  the  stone  wall  inclosure ;  the  wall  beino1  built  of 

^ 

stone  that  is  composed  of  millions  of  petrified  sea 
shells. 

Friday,  the  21st,  Col.  Hartranft  received  and  issued 
orders  for  the  51st  to  be  ready  to  move  at  7  o'clock, 
that  morning.  The  following  extract  from  a  private 
letter  gives  an  account  of  the  march  and  its  object: 

"  On  Friday  morning  last,  we  took  up  our  line  of 
March,  at  7  o'clock,  for  Pollocksville,  situated  on  the 
Trent  river,  twenty-three  miles  from  Newbern,  where 
we  arrived  at  dusk  of  the  same  day.  Our  object  was 
to  burn  the  three  bridges  that  cross,  each  five  or  six 
miles  apart.  We  burnt  the  one  at  Pollocksville  first : 
and  then  about  11  o'clock  that  night  our  scouts  came 
in  and  told  us  that  the  third  bridge,  which  is  at  Tren 
ton,  iiad  been  fired  by  Capt.  Allabough  and  his  com 
pany,  who  were  trying  to  find  their  way  back  through 
the  dark  to  the  regiment,  or  what  there  was  of  it ;  for, 
in  fact,  there  was  less  than  four  hundred  of  us. 
Nearly  or  quite  one-half  of  the  regiment  staid  back 
in  quarters ;  arid  as  the  orders  were  for  no  one  to  go 
who  did  not  feel  able  or  willing,  a  good  number  pre 
ferred  remaining  in  camp. 

tl  Well,  we  got  back  last  night,  and  found  the  camp 


116      HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

in  a  whirl  of  excitement  about  our  safety.  News  bad 
got  in  before  us  that  our  party  had  all  been  cut  to 
pieces ;  that  the  rebel  cavalry  had  surrounded  us, 
and  we  would  not  surrender;  therefore,  we  were  all 
cut  up.  The  51st  New  York  and  the  9th  New  Jer 
sey  were  just  given  orders  to  reinforce  us,  when  they 
saw  our  regimental  colors  crossing  the  railroad  about 
a  mile  off  from  our  camp.  We  had  an  awful  tramp 
of  it,  I  assure  you.  We  had  to  ford  eight  streams  of 
water  that  were  up  to  our  waists,  besides  several 
others  that  were  knee  deep ;  and  the  roads  Avere  ex 
ceedingly  muddy.  I  saw  some  few  very  beautiful 
houses,  and  the  plantations  all  looked  so  sweet ;  fruit 
trees  all  out  in  full  bloom,  arid  everything  wearing 
the  garb  of  spring  verdure;  but  every  place  was  de 
serted,  except  by  slaves,  who  wanted  us  to  take  them 
along  with  us.  I  wish  we  could,  for  I  pity  them." 

When  within  about  one  mile  of  Pollocksville,  the 
regiment  came  to  a  halt.  Co.  C,  Captain  Allabough, 
was  detailed  to  march  to  the  upper  bridge  at  Trenton 
to  fire  it ;  but  as  it  was  dark  when  they  started,  it 
grew  still  darker  as  it  grew  later,  and  their  march  was 
necessarily  very  slow.  However,  about  midnight  he 
succeeded  in  applying  the  torch,  and  it  was  soon 
consumed  ;  after  which  he  tl  about  face,"  and  groping 
his  way  back,  rejoined  his  regiment. 

Co.  D,  Capt.  Ed.  Schall,  volunteered  to  go  into 
PollocksvilJe  and  burn  the  bridge  at  that  place, 
which  they  did  in  splendid  style,  although  quite 
early  in  the  evening,  and  the  inhabitants  all  walking 
about  the  village  and  attending  to  their  business.  So 
quietly  and  successfully  did  Co.  D  do  their  work,  that 
the  bridge  was  all  in  flames  from  one  end  to  the  other, 
and  cut  in  two,  so  as  it  burned  it  would  fall  in  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      117 

river  and  render  it  past  repairing,  that  the  citizens 
wondered  how  the  act  could  have  been  done  so 
quick  ;  but  the  pouring  of  turpentine  and  other  in 
gredients  over  the  wood  work  was  the  labor  of  only 
a  minute ;  and  the  application  of  the  torch  spread 
the  flames  with  the  speed  of  lightning  over  its  whole 
surface,  and  the  large  columns  of  black  smoke  rap 
idly  ascending,  notified  the  reserve  that  the  work 
was  accomplished. 

Co.  D,  Capt.  Schall,  was  detailed  to  picket  the 
road  on  the  flank  of  the  reserves  to  protect  it  from 
surprise,  'and  also  to  picket  the  the  rear  of  Co.  C, 
to  prevent  it  from  being  cut  off  in  that  quarter 
from  the  main  body  or  reserves.  The  reserves  con 
sisted  of  Go's.  A,  I,  F,  E,  G,  K,  and  B,  who  moved 
back  to  the  cross  or  forks  of  the  road  about  two 
miles  from  Pollocks ville,  where  they  bivouacked  for 
the  night,  and  made  themselves  a  cup  of  coffee, 
leaving  Co.  D  in  the  town  to  guard  against  any 
armed  force  assembling  in  it  for  any  treacherous 
purposes,  and  leaving  Co.  C  picketing  the  road  lead 
ing  to  Trenton. 

Col.  Hartranft  and  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  evidently 
evinced  a  great  deal  of  uneasiness  throughout  the 
whole  night  for  the  safety  of  Capt.  Allabough  and 
his  company,  as  it  was  fully  expected  they  would 
return  at  a  specified  time  whether  they  accomplished 
their  task  or  not ;  and  as  the  full  time  had  elapsed, 
Col.  Hartranft  or  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  could  be  seen  on 
their  horses  at  full  gallop  going  up  the  road,  unat 
tended  by  an  orderly,  about  every  half  hour  through 
out  the  night.  Col.  Bell,  in  one  of  his  tours,  captured 
two  citizens  in  a  buggy,  who  were  very  anxious  to  be 
allowed  to  proceed  to  their  homes  at  Trenton ;  but  Col. 


118     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Bell  "  could  not  see  it,"  and  consequently  brought  the 
"  highly  indignant  chivalry  "  into  the  reserves,  and 
put  them  under  guard  for  the  remainder  of  the  night. 
They  were  very  profuse  in  offering  promises  and 
bribes  for  their  liberty,  but  it  was  all  in  vain;  and 
in  their  spleen  they  unintentionally  gave  Gol.  Hart- 
ranit  and  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  the  highest  credit  that 
words  could  convey  for  their  devoted  course  as  ex 
ecutive  officers  and  soldiers  in  fearlessly  doing  their 
duty. 

Early  next  morning  Capt.  Allabough  and  his  com 
pany  found  their  way  back  to  the  reserves  'in  safety, 
which  gratified  Col.  Hartranft  and  Lieut.  Col.  Bell 
very  much.  Co.  D  and  the  pickets  all  being  in,  the 
regiment,  with  its  two  prisoners,  began  the  return 
march  at  7  o'clock.  After  going  three  or  four  rniles, 
the  men  began  to  give  out  with  fatigue,  being  on  the 
long  march  of  the  day  before,  and  up  all  night  in  the 
rain,  without  shelter  or  food,  they  had  become  too 
much  fagged  out  and  weak  to  stand  the  march  so 
well  on  the  return.  About  the  middle  of  the  after 
noon  the  regiment  arrived  at  Evans's  plantation,  or 
at  least  the  advance  of  it;  for  the  men  being  wet 
and  hungry,  footsore  and  tired,  they  had  straggled 
to  the  extent  of  three  or  four  miles.  Col.  Hartranft 
remained  with  the  larger  portion  of  the  regiment  for 
the  first  ten  miles ;  but  seeing  his  men  were  failing 
from  being  overtasked,  and  very  much  crippled  with 
painfully  sore  feet,  he  dismounted  and  waited  for  the 
rear  of  his  regiment  to  catch  up  to  where  he  was ; 
then  selecting  the  worst  cases,  he  gave  them  his  horse 
to  ride  alternately,  and  assisting  with  his  arms  to 
support  others,  he  helped  them  along  as  best  he  could, 
until  he  and  his  "cripples"  caught  up  to  the  colors, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      119 

which  had  halted  at  the  above-mentioned  plantation, 
pursuant  to  his  orders.  Some  few  of  the  advance 
kept  on  until  they  arrived  in  camp  ;  but  the  majority 
rested  at  Evans's  for  a  couple  of  hours,  until  all  were 
up,  or  close  enough  to  exclude  the  possibility  of  cap 
ture.  The  halt  had  greatly  benefited  the  men ;  for 
they  kept  in  close  column,  with  little  or  no  straggling, 
for  the  remainder  of  the  return  march,  and  arrived 
in  camp  early  in  the  evening,  to  find  their  long  ab 
sence  had  given  rise  to  a  rumor  that  they  were  all 
"  cut  up,"  and  the  51st  New  York  and  9th  New 
Jersey  were  about  starting  out  to  learn  the  fate  of 
the  "  bridgeburners,"  and  to  render  them  whatever 
assistance  lay  in  their  power.  On  arriving  in  camp, 
the  "Kegulation's"  formalities  for  "breaking  ranks" 
were  omitted,  and  each  man  "struck"  for  his  res 
pective  quarters,  to  seek  that  repose  he  stood  so 
much  in  need  of  after  the  excitement  and  perilous 
tramp  of  forty -six  miles.  A  few,  and  only  a  few, 
could  not  reach  camp  that  night;  but,  from  their 
crippled  condition,  were  obliged  to  throw  them 
selves  down  in  the  muddy  road  and  quarter  there, 
coming  into  camp  early  next  morning.  This  march 
is  one  that  will  never  be  forgotten  by  any  that  par 
ticipated  in  it ;  and  well  may  it  be  remembered  ! 

On  Sunday,  the  23d,  the  day  after  the  return 
march  from  Pollocksville,  the  vessels  laden  with 
supplies  were  unloaded,  and  by  the  middle  of  the 
afternoon,  rations  were  issued  in  great  abundance, 
being  the  first  issue  of  full  rations  since  the  regi 
ment  embarked  on  the  Cossack  at  Koanoke  on  the 
3d  of  the  month,  twenty  days  back,  and  in  that 
twenty  days  it  is  beyond  the  power  of  my  pen  to 
tell  in  detail  the  trials  arid  sufferings  of  this  noble 
band  of  patriots ! 


120     HISTORY"   OF  THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 


CHAPTER    VII. 

Arrival  of  convalescents  and  fresh  troops — Camp  Franklin — 
Proficiency  of  Company  B — Losses  by  sickness  and  battle — 
Grumblings — Congratulatory  orders — Gen.  McClellan. 

ON"  Tuesday,  the  25th,  all  the  officers  and  men 
who  were  left  invalids  at  the  island  on  the  depart 
ure  of  the  Cossack  now  joined  their  commands, 
having  arrived  fully  restored  in  health,  with  the  ex 
ception  of  a  few  who  had  been  attacked  with  the 
small-pox,  but  they  soon  followed  thereafter.  On  the 
arrival  of  the  convalescents  a  mail  also  came,  being 
the  first  one  since  the  capture  of  Newbern,  and 
being  a  rainy  day  (confound  it,  it  rained  all  the 
time)  nothing  was  done  but  reading  and  writing 
letters. 

On  Saturday,  the  29th  of  March,  the  regiment 
packed  up  and  moved  camp  from  the  barracks  to  a 
place  nearly  opposite  the  city  of  Newbern,  where  it 
received  the  large  Sibley  tents,  and  pitched  them  in 
regulation  form  and  gave  it  the  name  of  "Camp 
Hartranft."  While  lying  at  this  camp  it  was  ex 
pected  that  the  enemy  would  make  an  attack  on  our 
forces  to  recapture  the  city,  as  they  were  assembling 
in  strong  force  at  Goldsboro'  and  Kingston,  and  had 
attacked  the  cavalry  pickets  and  driven  them  in, 
killing  one  and  wounding  several  others;  but  the 
anticipated  attack  was  not  made  and  things  quieted 
down  to  the  regular  monotony  of  camp  life,  during 
which  time  the  steamer  Admiral  arrived  off  the  city 
with  reinforcements — the  17th  Massachusetts.  Re 
inforcements  began  to  arrive  almost  daily,  for  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      121 

next  day  after  the  Admiral  arrived,  the  Cossack 
came  in  with  a  new  regiment  from  Baltimore,  the 
2d  Maryland,  and  the  next  day  the  George  Peabody 
arrived  with  the  79th  New  York.  On  the  2d  of 
April  our  regiment  went  to  escort  the  2d"  Maryland 
to  its  quarters,  but  from  some  unexplained  cause 
the  escort  did  not  take  place  and  t  e  51st  returned 
to  its  camp. 

About  this  time  Col.  Hartranft  received  a  short 
leave  of  absence  to  visit  his  home  in  Norristown, 
Pa.  The  command  of  the  regiment  fell  to  the  lot  of 
Lieut.  Col.  Thomas  S.  Bell,  which  at  first  caused 
considerable  grumbling,  for  the  regiment  had  been 
commanded  by  none  other  than  Col.  Hartranft,  and 
they  knew  the  Lieut.  Col.  to  be  a  much  stricter 
disciplinarian,  who  would  not  overlook  their  little 
failings  with  the  mercy  they  thought  their  old  com 
mander  would.  Visions  of  -guard-houses,  carrying 
logs,  &c.,  loomed  up  in  huge  array  before  their 
fertile  minds,  but  it  only  lasted  a  few  days,  when,  to 
their  agreeable  surprise,  they  found  that  not  only  a 
true  soldier  commanded  them,  but  a  thorough  gentle 
man,  and  from  that  time  up  to  the  death  of  Col. 
Bell  he  was  honored  and  truly  loved  by  all  his  men. 

On  the  3d  of  April  the  regiment  again  "struck 
tents"  and  changed  locality,  leaving  Camp  Hartranft 
at  half-past  one  in  the  afternoon,  and  crossed  the 
Trent  river  on  a  new  bridge  that  was  built  in  place 
of  the  one  burned  down  on  the  retreat  of  the  rebels 
after  the  battle  of  Newborn,  and  marched  through 
the  city  to  the  outskirts  at  the  upper  end  of  the 
town,  and  there  again  pitched  their  tents  on  a  small 
open  lot  and  named  it  ''  Camp  Franklin."  Although 
the  march  was  but  a  short  one,  yet  the  excessive 


122      HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

heat  at  that  time  kept  them  until  4J  p.  M.  before 
they  arrived  at  their  new  camping  ground,  perspi 
ration  rolling  off  the  men  as  if  it  had  been  the  month 
of  August.  The  next  morning,  the  4th,  a  detail  of 
one  commissioned  officer  and  six  enlisted  men  was 
made  to  go  down  the  river  to  unload  commissary 
stores.  Capt.  J.  Merrill  Lynn  and  the  six  men  at 
tended  to  their  '-fatigue  duty"  with  much  energy, 
and  it  was  well  named  when  it  was  called  "  fatigue 
duty." 

On  the  5th  a  mail  arrived,  in  which  were  some 
papers  that  spoke  very  flatteringly  of  the  services  of 
the  51st  P.  V.,  but  as  the  reporters  were  all  Eastern 
men,  they  had  as  usual  tacked  the  4th  Rhode  Island 
on  to  their  skirts  for  a  large  slice  of  credit  that  the 
51st  did  not  consider  them  justly  entitled  to,  and  their 
indignation  at  this  was  only  equalled  by  the  "  reserve  " 
affair  of  the  "  Frank  Leslie's "  correspondent's  ac 
count  of  the  battle  of  Roanoke.  On  Sunday,  the 
6th,  the  51st  P.  V.  marched  into  the  city  to  church, 
headed  by  its  excellent  band.  On  arriving  at 
church  the  regiment  li stacked  arms"  in  the  street 
and  left  them  under  the  care  of  three  guards  until 
the  conclusion  of  the  ceremonies.  The  Chaplain,  Rev. 
Dan'l.  G.  Mallory,  officiated,  and  the  choir,  aided  by 
a  magnificent  organ,  lent  interest  and  solemnity  to 
the  occasion.  During  the  stay  of  the  regiment  at 
Camp  Franklin,  it  marched  into  the  city  nearly  every 
Sabbath  to  attend  Divine  services. 

On  Monday,  the  7th,  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  had  inaugu 
rated  a  new  feature  in  the  discipline  of  the  51st 
P.  V.,  viz.: — "Regimental  roll  call"  at  daybreak, 
compelling  every  officer  and  man  who  was  not  on 
duty  or  sick  to  be  present  to  answer  to  their  names. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  123 

This  order  compelled  the  men  to  get  up  a  little 
earlier  than  was  their  wont  to  do  when  answering  to 
their  names  at  company  roll-call.  But  the  idea  of 
fetching  out  the  lt  shoulder-straps "  so  early  and 
giving  them  a  taste  of  a  morning's  roll-call  pleased 
the  men  so  well  that  I  believe  they  would  have  risen 
at  midnight  without  one  word  of  complaint,  if  it  had 
only  been  to  see  that  "  wooden  man,"  as  a  certain 
officer  was  termed,  forced  to  march  to  the  "front  and 
centre"  and  answer  to  his  name.  Col.  Bell  also 
began  his  u  hobby,"  viz.,  regimental  drill,  and  with 
that  and  company  drill  the  men  were  kept  with  their 
noses  to  the  grindstone  during  the  existence  of 
Camp  Franklin;  for  the  duties  were  continued  with 
out  much  intermission  even  after  the  return  of  Col. 
Hartranft  from  his  leave  of  absence. 

Much  and  special  attention  was  directed  to  the 
skirmish  drill  and  bayonet  exercise  by  both  regi 
ment  and  company,  and  there  did  not  exist  a  com 
pany  in  the  whole  expedition  that  could  vie  with 
Capt.  Bell's  Co.  "  B  "  in  the  bayonet  exercise.  Every 
lunge,  parry  and  carte  were  performed  with  so  much 
promptness  and  precision,  that  it  looked  more  like 
automatic  machine  work  than  that  of  men  moving 
by  will.  Other  companies  also  did  well,  especially 
Co.  D  ;  but  none  had  the  training  that  Co.  B  had, 
nor  did  another  drill-master  exist  in  the  regi 
ment  as  was  Ferdinand  S.  Bell ;  very  explicit  in  his 
instructions,  firm  in  his  commands,  correct  in  his 
orders  and  movements,  and  who  could  not  be  per 
suaded  to  believe  that  a  soldier  had  a  right  to  make 
a  mistake,  and  so  heartily  did  his  ll  boys  "  concur  in 
his  opinions  that  they  made  no  mis  ake.-s. 

In  the  beginning  of  April,    1862,    quinine    and 


124     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

whiskey  had  to  be  resorted  to  to  prevent  fever  and 
ague,  and  other  diseases  incident  to  a  marshy  coun 
try.  The  original  number  of  men  engaged  in  the 
expedition  numbered  about  15,000,  but  from  vari 
ous  causes  they  were  reduced  to  less  than  half  that 
number,  say  7,000,  consequently  the  quinine  in 
whiskey  was  ad  ministered  daily  to  the  men  as  a  pre- 
ventative,  but  was  not  continued  many  days  at  a 
time.  The  strength  of  the  command  was  kept  up  by 
constant  arrivals  of  reinforcements.  The  losses  of 
the  expedition,  by  death  from  disease  and  drown 
ing,  from  the  time  that  it  took  its  departure  from 
Annapolis  to  its  arrival  at  Hatteras,  were  60,  and 
from  that  time  up  to  the  capture  of  Newbern  the 
total  daily  average  of  deaths  from  wounds  and  sick 
ness  was  three  and-a-half  per  cent,  while  the  increase 
of  sickness  became  alarming  to  the  commanding 
officers.  The  51st  P.  V.  left  Harrisburg  in  Novem 
ber,  1861,  with  981  officers  and  men,  but  now,  say 
1st  of  April,  1862,  it  was  reduced  to  about  350 
effective  men,  for  when  they  formed  into  line  to 
escort  the  2d  Mary  land  into  camp  there  were  but  385 
all  told,  and  fully  35  of  them  were  unfit  for  effective 
service,  leaving  the  above-mentioned  balance  of  effec 
tive  men  at  350.  The  excessive  heat  had  began  to 
tell  fearfully  on  the  men  ;  diarrhoea,  dysentery,  ague, 
rheumatism,  camp  fever  and  small-pox  had  seized 
hold  of  the  men  and  prostrated  them  on  beds  of 
sickness  that  took  months  for  their  total  recovery. 
An  extract  from  a  private  letter,  seaking  of  this, 
savs  : — "  We  are  all  desponding,  our  situation  is  to 
be  pitied ;  out  in  the  hottest  kind  of  a  sun  or  in  the 
shade,  it  is  all  the  same  ;  your  temples  throb  with 
the  heat  as  if  your  very  skull  would  split.  Diseases 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      125 

of  all  kinds  are  seizing  and  reducing  us  so  fast  that 
in  three  months  more,  at  this  rate,  there  will  be  noth 
ing  left  of  the  old  51st." 

Although  the  writer  of  the  above  had  prophesied 
that  at  the  rate  of  the  reduction,  in  three  months, 
there  would  be  nothing  left  of  the  "old  51st,"  there 
were  a  few,  but  only  a  few  !  of  the  original  organi 
zation  left  to  see  the  winding  up  of  the  greatest  re 
bellion  that  ever  existed  ! 

The  men  of  the  51st  began  now  to  look  for  the 
paymaster,  and  with  great  anxiety  too,  for  it  had 
been  several  months  since  they  bad  been  paid  off, 
and  they  felt  the  double  necessity  of  getting  some 
money,  as  well  for  their  own  private  wants  as  to  send 
home  to  their  families,  who  were  solely  dependent 
on  the  absent  ones  for  their  sustenance. 

If  there  ever  was  a  gross  injustice  done  the  sol 
dier  it  was  by  the  Government  keeping  its  noble 
defenders  so  many  long,  long  months  without  their 
hard-earned  pay.  The  untold  misery  caused  by  such 
wilful  carelessness  about  the  necessities  of  the  sol 
diers'  families,  can  only  be  laid  at  the  doors  of  the 
officers,  who  were  snugly  ensconced  on  a  cushioned 
chair  in  some  luxuriously-furnished  parlor  in  the 
city  of  Washington,  mayhap  with  their  feet  resting 
on  an  elevated  object  level  or  higher  than  their 
brains,  with  a  costly  cigar  in  their  mouths,  and 
'•'wondering  why  the  army  don't  move.''  Little  did 
such  wretches,  officers,  perhaps  I  should  have  said, 
care  about  the  misery  they  were  entailing  on  the 
families  of  the  soldiers  by  withholding  their  pay,  as 
long  as  they  could  get  men,  good,  true,  loyal  men, 
to  bare  their  breasts  to  the  enemy's  bullets,  that  their 
own  worthless  carcasses  might  revel  in  debauchery 


126     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

and  luxury,  without  jeopardizing  their  would  be 
valuable  lives  to  save  that  country  they  had  sworn 
to  support,  yet  cared  not  to  do,  but  rather  support 
ing  the  enemy  by  disgusting  the  intelligent  soldier 
with  the  service  in  which  he  took  such  pride  at  his 
debut.  No  such  paltry,  deceiving  plea  as  "  can't 
get  money  to  pay  with,"  was  ever  received  by  the 
army  as  a  truth,  nor  ever  will,  for  the  loyal  capital 
ists  of  the  North  throw  the  base  falsehood  back  into 
their  teeth  with  double  force,  for  when  did  the  Gov 
ernment  ever  appeal  to  them,  its  supporters,  for  a 
loan,  but  what  it  was  instantly  forthcoming  ?  I 
don't  wish  to  cast  any  reflections  on  that  truly  good 
man,  Mr.  Lincoln,  for  the  soldiers  knew  that  he  had 
his  hands  full  without  acting  paymaster  of  his  im 
mense  army  as  well  as  being  its  commander-in-chief, 
but  the  unpardonable  blame  must  rest  somewhere, 
and  no  doubt  the  guilty  party  feels  the  reproach  of 
a  perjured  conscience,  as  some  of  the  families  who 
suffered  by  their  neglect  felt  the  poignancy  of  want. 
Volumes  might  be  written  on  the  many  wrongs  in 
the  pay  department  to  which  the  soldier  has  been 
subjected,  and  yet  the  half  not  be  told.  Could  the 
Government  expect  its  citizens  to  rally  to  its  sup 
port,  sacrificing  everything,  life,  limbs,  health  and 
the  pleasures  of  a  comfortable  home,  while  it  neg 
lected  to  make  some  necessary  equivalent  at  the 
proper  time,  instead  of  binding  both  officers  and  men 
by  an  oath  to  do  their  duty,  at  the  same  time  it 
grossly  neglected  its  duty  ?  We  think  not ;  and  yet 
it  did.  To  keep  men  six,  eight,  ten  and  even  twelve 
months  without  one  cent  of  pay,  is  a  wrong  that  will 
never  be  forgotten  by  the  entire  army,  that  toiled 
four  long  wearisome  years,  and  whose  families  were 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  127 

solely  dependent  on  the  paltry  stipend  allowed  each 
man  per  month.  There  may  be  some  of  the  "stay- 
at-homes"  who  think,  that  from  the  enormous  taxa 
tion  produced  by  the  war,  the  pay  was  large  enough, 
but  it  must  be  understood  that  it  was  not  the  sol 
diers'  pay  alone  that  created  such  a  debt ;  there  were 
other  leaks  in  the  ship,  for  which  this  great  nation 
should  hold  its  servants  accountable.  For  instance 
a  soldier  whose  pay  was  only  from  thirteen  dollars 
per  month,  up  to  twenty-two  dollars,  would  be  de 
tailed  as  clerk  in  the  Quartermasters'  Depart 
ment,  Commissary's,  or  at  post  or  field  headquarters, 
with  no  other  compensation  than  his  pay  as  a  sol 
dier  ;  but  a  citizen  would  be  employed  by  some,  to 
do  the  clerking  at  a  salary  of  one  hundred  dollars 
and  more  per  month;  for  the  same  duty  that  the 
soldier  did.  And  it  frequently  happened  the  soldier 
was  far  more  competent  than  the  citizen.  Again,  a 
citizen  would  receive  from  twenty -five  dollars  per 
month  up  to  one  hundred  dollars,  rations  included; 
to  be  wagon-masters  and  teamsters,  while  the  soldier 
would  receive  his  little  thirteen  or  sixteen  dollars 
per  month  for  the  same  labor  better  performed.  In 
the  name  of  common  sense,  is  this  justice?"  For  at 
the  time  a  battle  was  raging,  the  citizen,  wagon- 
masters  and  teamsters  would  look  out  for  themselves, 
and  keep  their  trains  with  the  supplies  of  ammuni 
tion  and  rations  so  far  away  frum  danger  that  they 
could  not  be  found  when  urgently  needed.  Was  it  so 
with  the  soldier  wagoners  ?  Had  they  to  be  ridden 
after  for  half  a  day  before  they  could  be  found? 
No!  The  ammunition  trains  would  be  sure  to  be 
found  closed  en  masse  close  to  a  battery  or  batteries, 
ready  to  supply  the  "  warriors  "  with  all  the  shot  and 


128      HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

shell  required,  and  yet  the  citizen  employes  could 
get  their  pay  nearly  always  at  the  expiration  of  two 
months. 

This  great  disparity  between  the  soldier's  and 
citizen's  pay  is  only  the  splashings  of  a  drop  from 
the  big  leak  that  has  caused  the  Great  Ship  of  State 
to  groan  and  creak  in  every  timber,  from  its  heavily 
laden  cargo  of  taxation.  "  Bed  tapeism "  is  to 
blame  for  millions  of  dollars  foolishly  squandered, 
and  has  helped  to  swell  the  enormous  national  war 
debt.  Ordnance  and  ordnance  stores  have  been 
thrown  away  and  destroyed  when  they  should  have 
been  saved  for  the  government,  and  why  ?  because 
"red  tape''  forbade  it.  We  suppose  contractors 
might  suffer  had  economy  been  looked  at.  Horses, 
mules  and  cattle  also,  were  in  the  category  of  losses. 
If  a  horse  or  mule  would  "give  out,"  unhook  him 
or  it  and  turn  it  loose,  perhaps  in  a  wilderness  or 
some  barren  country,  to  which  the  great  Sahara 
might  be  an  oasis  in  comparison,  without  ever  being 
hunted  up  for  service  again  ;  and  how  many  such 
poor  faithful  animals  have  lain  along  the  roadside 
dead,  when  a  little  judicious  treatment  would  have 
put  them  on  their  feet  again  and  back  in  their 
wagon  trains!  On  the  return  of  the  51st  P.  V.  from 
Knoxville,  Tennessee,  the  writer,  with  Philip  Wam- 
pole,  of  Co.  D,  after  crossing  the  Cumberland  Gap, 
concluded  to  count  the  dead  horses  and  rnules  that 
lay  along  the  roadside.  The  regiment  marched  that 
day  seventeen  miles,  and  at  night  we  compared 
notes,  and  reduced  the  miles  to  yards,  and  found  that 
it  averaged  a  dead  horse  or  mule  for  every  forty-five 
yards  of  the  seventeen  miles,  and  we  only  counted 
those  that  laid  close  to  the  roadside  and  in  plain  view. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  129 

Hundreds  of  others,  no  doubt,  lay  in  the  bushes  and 
off'  from  the  road  that  we  did  not  see.  Reader,  do 
you  say  that  death  is  a  natural  consequence  under 
such  circumstances?  Granted!  Yet  you  cannot  but 
say  that  thousands  of  mules  and  horses  might  be 
alive  at  this  writing,  that  are  dead,  which  by  "red 
tape"  are  added  as  unavoidable  losses  that  help  to 
swell  the  war  debt.  "  Red  tape  "  says :  If  a  wagon 
breaks  down  on  the  march,  abandon  it.  If  a  horse 
or  rnule  gets  sick  or  tired  out,  or  starved  out,  aban 
don  it,  and  leave  it  to  its  fate !  Uncle  Sam  is  rich. 
Such  is  the  extravagance  of  the  nation's  servants, 
of  whom  the  nation  had  a  right  to  expect  better 
things;  but  as  this  is  rather  a  chapter  of  grumblings 
than  of  narrative,  the  reader  will  pardon  the  digres 
sion  and  we  will  "about  face"  and  go  back  to  the 
history  of  the  51st  P.  V. 

On  the  5th  of  April,  1862,  congratulatory  orders 
were  read  to  the  regiment  on  dress  parade,  from 
the  States  of  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania.  President  Lin 
coln  ;  Secretary  of  War,  E.  M.  Stanton ;  Quar.  Mas. 
Hale,  and  all  the  heads  of  Departments,  tendering 
their  thanks  to  the  51st  P.  V.  for  the  gallantry  dis 
played  by  it  at  the  capture  of  Newbern.  This  was 
the  first  acknowledgment  of  its  services  that  the  51st 
had  received.  Knowing  it  justly  deserved,  the  men 
received  the  flattering  remarks  with  a  spirit  o! 
enthusiasm. 

On  Sunday,  April  6th,  another  steamer  arrived  at 
Newbern  from  Roanoke  Island,  with  convalescents 
who  had  been  left  at  the  Island  Hospital  at  the 
time  of  the  departure  of  those  who  arrived  pre 
viously.  Nothing  of  particular  interest  took  place 
in  the  regiment  from  the  6th  to  the  9th  of  April,  on 

7 


130      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

which  latter  date  the  regiment  was  again  paid  off, 
excepting  a  violent  thunder  storm,  which  immersed 
the  camp-ground  several  inches  under  water  during 
the  night  time,  and  making  guard  duty  anything  but 
pleasant,  yet  it  had  the  effect  of  a  continuation  of  the 
issue  of  whiskey  and  quinine,  much  to  the  benefit 
and  the  desires  of  the  "boys."     The  regiment  being 
encamped  on  one  of  the  open  lots  at  the  outskirts  of 
the  city,  it  gave  the  boys  frequent  opportunities  of 
going  through  the  city  with  considerable  freedom  ; 
but  the  quinine  and  whiskey  received  in  camp  only 
tended  to  provoke  their  appetites  to  crave  whiskey 
without  the  quinine,  and  so  determined  were  certain 
ones  to  have  it,  that  they  not  unfrequently  paid  three 
to  five  dollars,  per  bottle,  holding  about  one  pint. 
Very  stringent  orders  had  been  issued  by  Gen.  Burn- 
side  and  his  Provost  Marshal  to  the  inhabitants  and 
citizens,  forbidding  them  to  sell  spirituous  or   malt 
liquors  on  the  penalty  of  confiscation  of  their  stock, 
closing  up  of  their  places  of  business,  fines  and  im 
prisonment,  but  all  to  no  purpose,  for  the  whiskey 
was  in  town  and  the  boys  did  get  it — much  as  they 
wanted  and  more  than  they  needed.     The  query  is, 
how  did  they  get  it  ?     That  is   much  easier  asked 
than  answered  ;  but  a  remark  made  a  long  time  after 
by   that    gentlemanly   and   good   soldier,  Gen.  Ed. 
Fererro,  in  reference  to  the  men  of  his  brigade  obtain 
ing  whiskey,  will  convey  an  idea  of  their  persistent 
efforts  to  procure  it.     He  said,  ''  Were  my  men  to 
be    cast   on  an    island    where    whiskey   was    never 
known  to  have  been,  and  they  allowed  to  run  at 
will,  scarcely   a  man    but   what    would   come   into 
camp  with  his  canteen  full,  even  if  they  would  have 
to  rend  rojks  asunder  searching  for  it."    But  Lieut. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       131 

Col.  Bell  being  a  strictly  temperate  man  as  well  as 
a  devout  Christian,  was  determined  to  stay  the  dis 
order  produced  by  excessive  "bibing,"  and  conse 
quently  in  order  to  check  it,  was  compelled  to  in 
flict  such  punishment  as  in  his  sound  judgment  he 
deemed  best.  The  guard-house  received  a  good  share 
of  those  whose  offences  were  light,  the  log  and  the 
ring  were  for  others.  Commissioned  and  non-com 
missioned  officers  did  not  escape  his  impartial 
decrees;  while  the  latter  were  reduced  to  the  ranks 
again  as  privates,  the  former  were  under  arrest  in 
their  own  quarters  with  charges  preferred  against 
them,  and  some  were  requested  to  resign  in  order 
to  save  exposure.  So  determined  was  the  lieutenant 
colonel  to  break  up  the  vice  that  he  turned  a  deaf 
ear  to  all  their  entreaties,  and  made  them  all  suffer 
for  indiscretion  by  whatever  punishment  their 
offences  merited.  On  the  10th  of  April,  at  dress- 
parade,  at  least  one  dozen  "  non-com's"  were  reduced 
to  the  ranks  for  improper  conduct.  A  regimental 
court-martial  convened  by  order  of  Col.  Bell  settled 
the  cases  of  the  commissioned  officers,  and  discipline 
once  more  reigned. 

None  of  the  crimes  committed  by  either  officers 
or  men  were  to  be  considered  heinous,  for  had  they 
been  committed  in  the  streets  of  Norristown,  Lewis- 
burg,  or  Easton,  they  would  have  been  unnoticed 
by  either  the  citizens  or  constabulary,  but  it  was  in 
the  army  and  considered  a  violation  of  army  disci 
pline,  and  a  "mountain"  as  a  necessity  had  to  be 
made  out  of  less  than  "a  rnole  hill." 

In  looking  over  my  notes  and  papers  I  find  a 
private  letter  from  a  member  of  the  51st,  dated 
Newbern,  May  10th,  1862,  of  which  I  wish  to  insert 


132      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

here  an  extract  for  the  purpose  of  showing  that  Gen. 
Geo.  B.  McClollan  had  not  been  condemned  by  all 
the  soldiers  on  account  of  his  politics,  for  be  it 
known  that  at  that  time  not  one  soldier  in  ten  thou 
sand  knew  what  his  politics  were.  It  says,  "I  do 
not  think  any  of  us  will  be  home  before  the  1st  of 
March,  1863.  We  may  be  home  sooner,  as  all  the 
troops  here  think,  but  I  do  not,  for  we  dare  not  move 
from  here  until  McGlellan  makes  a  move.  If  he  would 
only  do  something  towards  the  war  it  might  be  soon 
ended  Some  give  him  credit  for  being  so  slow,  but 
they  ain't  soldiers  that  do,  for  a  soldier  knows  bet 
ter.  They  know  too  that  it  is  more  of  sympathy 
for  the  rebel  cause  than  it  is  strategy  in  not  moving 
on  and  try  and  do  some  little  towards  ending  this 
war."  As  will  be  seen  in  the  above  extract,  there 
is  not  the  slightest  allusion  made  to  his  politics,  and 
I  only  give  it  a  place  in  these  pages  for  no  other 
purpose  than  to  show  that  the  many  imprecations 
heaped  upon  the  heads  of  good  loyal  men  for  oppos 
ing  him  on  the  grounds  of  his  political  faith,  are  un 
mitigated  slanders  on  the  correct  judgment  of  good 
soldiers.  Although  the  writer  of  the  extract  does 
say  that  McClellan  is  in  sympathy  with  the  cause 
of  the  South,  yet  he  (the  writer)  seems  to  infer  that 
there  iarsome  other  hidden  reason  for  the  General's 
slowness  to  make  a  move,  which  is  only  judged  to 
be  politics. 

On  Saturday,  April  12th,  a  new  feature  in  the  51st 
had  its  birth,  viz. :  Saturday  of  each  week  was  to  be 
devoted  to  the  washing  of  clothes  and  a  general 
cleansing  of  the  person,  and  policing  of  the  camp. 
Which  order  was  faithfully  kept  as  a  standing  order 
until  the  disbandrnent  of  the  regiment,  whenever  it 
could  possibly  be  enforced. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  133 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

Drilling  by  the  bugle— Maj.  Schall  in  command— On  board  the 
Admiral — Landing  near  Elizabeth  City — Currituck  Con  it- 
house — March  into  the  interior— Greetings  to  the  flag—  Fight 
at  Camden — Repulse  of  Hawkin's  Zouaves — Successful 
charge  of  the  51st — Retreat  of  the  enemy — Sudden  return 
march  to  the  ship — Liberation  of  convicts — List  of  casualties. 

ANOTHER  rumor,  about  this  time,  got  bruited  about 
through  the  various  camps,  that  the  troops  were  all  to 
be  sent  home  by  the  10th  of  June.  It  served  to  enliven 
the  soldiers  to  a  great  extent,  for  it  held  out  a  good 
prospect  of  once  more  getting  where  they  could  sit 
down  to  a  table,  and  get  something  better  to  eat  than 
that  stereotyped  dish  of  fat  oily  pork  and  "  hard 
tack,"  which  they  had  been  getting  daily  for  a  length 
of  time.  Coffee,  "  hard  tack,"  and  pork  for  break 
fast,  dinner,  arid  supper,  day  in  and  day  out  for 
weeks  at  a  time  without  any  change,  was  nearly  as 
bad  as  getting  nothing  to  eat ;  but  now  that  they 
had  been  paid  off  they  bought  little  varieties  such 
as  their  scanty  means  would  allow  at  the  exorbitant 
prices  they  were  compelled  to  pay. 

On  Monday,  April  14th,  an  attempt  was  made  to 
drill  the  regiment  by  the  sound  of  the  bugle,  but  the 
boys  evinced  so  little  interest  in  it  that  after  a  few 
days'  drilling  it  was  abandoned.  To  those  who  had 
no  ear  for  music  the  notes  of  the  bugle  sounded  all 
alike  and  they  could  not  tell  what  move  to  make  by 
its  sound,  but  relied  on  the  movements  of  those  who 
did  understand  for  their  guides;  but  with  those  who 
did  understand,  its  notes  were  anything  but  music 
to  them,  for  when  on  a  march,  they  would  be  halted 
for  a  rest,  that  accursed  bugle  would  sound  the 


134:     HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY- FIRST    REGIMENT 

"forward,"  and  all  its  music  (if  it  was  music)  lost 
•its  charms,  as  the  men  would  rise  up  and  move  off 
as  if  walking  on  eggs  or  stepping  a  la  parrot-toed. 
The  regiment  was  now  under  the  command  of  Maj. 
Edwin  Schall,  as  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  was  sitting  on 
court-martial  in  Newbern.  The  change  of  command 
at  this  time  came  very  acceptable  to  the  men  on 
account  of  the  intense  heat  of  the  daytime  during 
drill-hours,  and  their  only  trouble  now  while  it  was 
so  hot  was  the  fear  of  "  old  Johnny  "  returning  from 
his  leave  of  absence  and  putting  them  through  the 
"regimental "  for  three  or  four  hours  in  the  hot  sun. 
Maj.  Schall  did  not  fail  to  enforce  discipline,  nor  did 
he  fail  to  drill  the  regiment ;  but  after  keeping  it 
out  as  long  as  his  humane  heart  felt  was  long  enough 
for  his  men  in  the  rays  of  the  scorching  sun,  he 
would  break  ranks  and  let  the  men  get  a  little  of  the 
shade  while  it  was  going,  lu  must  not  be  thought 
as  Maj.  Schall  was  merciful  to  his  men,  that  they  re 
paid  his  generosity  with  ingratitude  by  carelessness 
in  their  drilling,  for  such  was  not  the  case.  They 
knew  him  too  well  and  loved  him  too  dearly  for 
that ;  but  on  the  contrary,  there  was  not  a  man  out 
on  drill  but  did  his  utmost  to  make  prompt  and 
correct  movements,  so  as  to  lighten  the  labors  of 
their  mnjor,  and  I  don't  wish  it  to  be  thought  here 
that  either  Col.  Hartranft  or  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  were 
such  brutes  as  to  be  void  of  feeling  for  their  men. 
They  both  sympathized  with  their  men  in  all  their 
trials  and  labors,  but  while  sympathizing  they  ex 
acted  from  the  men  all  that  they  thought  they 
could  bear,  not,  however,  from  a  wish  to  gratify  their 
own  desires,  but  for  the  purpose  of  making  the 
men  efficient  under  all  circumstances  for  the  vicissi- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      135 

tudes  of  war  and  the  benefit  of  the  country  in  its 
hour  of  direst  need. 

On  Wednesday,  April  16th,  1862,  began  the  de 
monstration  on  Norfolk,  Va.,  by  receiving  orders  to 
pack  up  and  go  on  board  of  the  transports.  Pre 
vious  to  the  orders  being  issued  a  rumor  had  became 
rife  in  camp  that  the  51st  P.  V.  was  to  go  to  Balti 
more  to  relieve  certain  troops  there  and  to  garrison 
the  city  and  guard  the  railroads  diverging  from  that 
place,  and  the  issuing  of  the  above  orders  filled 
every  one  with  delight  in  anticipation  of  being  that 
much  nearer  their  homes  and  friends,  for  those 
orders  were  the  ones  that  were  to  do  it,  at  least  all 
thought  so. 

By  noon  the  regiment  took  up  the  line  of  march 
for  the  wharf,  each  heart  buoyant  with  hope  of  soon 
being  in  the  Monumental  city,  nor  did  their  spirits 
-droop  until  they  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  Neuse 
and  were  again  traversing  the  placid  waters  of 
Pamlico  sound  in  the  direction  of  Roanoke  Island. 
"What  does  this  move  mean?"  was  a  question 
asked  on  all  sides,  but  none  knew,  even  the  "  know 
ing  ones  "  shook  their  heads  as  it  was  beyond  their 
conjecture. 

The  regiment  went  on  board  of  a  steamboat  which 
took  it  about  a  mile  down  the  stream,  when  the 
troops  embarked  on  the  fine,  commodious  steamer 
Admiral,  which  rode  at  anchor  until  the  following 
morning,  the  17th,  when  at  daylight  the  fleet  re 
ceived  the  signal  for  starting,  and  steam  being  kept 
up  all  night  the  vessels  immediately  got  under  way. 
Lieut.  Col.  Bell  being  at  the  start  in  command  of  the 
regiment,  and  the  expedition  under  the  sole  com 
mand  of  Gen.  Jesse  L.  Reno.  Nothing  occurred  of 


136     HISTORY   OF   THE   FJFTY-FIKST    REGIMENT 

any  interest  until  1  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  when 
the  Admiral  grounded,  and  so  effectually  did  the 
steamer  imbed  itself  in  the  mud  that  she  stuck  there 
until  the  next  morning,  when  three  tugs  came  to 
her  assistance  by  taking  off  all  the  troops  and  haul 
ing  her  out  into  deep  water,  after  which  the  troops 
re-embarked  on  her  and  she  again  started  "like  a 
thing  of  life  "  and  passed  Roanoke  Island  with  much 
caution  on  account  of  the  numerous  shoals  ;  but  as 
she  was  passing  from  the  waters  of  Croatan  sound 
into  those  of  the  Albemarle  she  unfortunately  ran 
aground  again  and  stuck  there  until  near  two  o'clock 
next  morning,  the  19th,  when  by  the  aid  of  those 
ant-like  tugs,  pulling  far  more  than  might  be  sup 
posed,  she  got  afloat  again  and  proceeded  on  her 
way  to  a  point  about  three  miles  east  of  Eliza 
beth  city,  N.  C.,  and  one  mile  east  of  the  Dismal 
Swamp  canal  where  it  empties  into  the  sound,  arriv 
ing  at  daylight;  but  owing  to  the  Admiral  ground 
ing  so  often  and  so  effectually  the  other  portion  of 
the  fleet  had  arrived  some  time  before  her,  and  some 
of  the  troops  had  already  landed.  The  gunboats 
were  already  at  work  shelling  the  woods  along  the 
shore  and  on  either  side  of  the  canal.  The  truth 
now  of  the  object  of  the  move  began  to  develop 
itself  and  all  knew  that  a  battle  was  imminent. 

Lieut. -Col.  Bell  gave  orders  to  disembark,  which 
was  considerable  of  a  task,  inasmuch  as  the  Admiral 
could  not  haul  up  close  to  shore  on  account  of  her 
deep  draught  of  water,  but  getting  as  close  to  shore 
as  she  could,  the  men  of  the  51st  had  to  wade  in  deep 
water  for  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  or  three  hun 
dred  yards.  At  the  given  signal  the  boys  with  their 
guns  on  their  shoulders  and  their  cartridge  boxes  fast 
ened  on  the  end  of  their  bayonets  to  secure  them 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      137 

against  coming  in  contact  with  the  wet,  leaped  over 
board  in  the  water,  which  was  up  to  the  necks  of 
many  of  them.  They  all,  however,  landed  in  safety, 
and  after  getting  on  shore  stacked  arms  and  awaited 
orders  ;  about  6J  A,  M.  they  came,  placing  Lieut. 
Col.  Bell  in  command  of  the  brigade  and  Maj.  Schall 
in  command  of  the  51st  P.  V.  At  precisely  7  o'clock 
the  regiment,  dripping  with  water,"  took  arms,"  and 
began  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  marches  on 
record.  I  will  here  be  bold  enough  to  say,  without 
fear  of  contradiction,  that  for  a  single  day's  inarch, 
no  part  of  the  Union  army  ever  performed  a  greater. 
For  this  noble  band  of  heroes  marched  forty-two 
miles  and  fought  a  hard  battle  of  one  hour  and  twenty- 
five  minutes'  duration.  The  marching  was  one  of  the 
most  difficult  kind,  being  previous  to  the  fight  over  a 
long,  dry  and  dusty  road  without  a  drop  of  water  save 
what  stood  in  stagnant  pools,  in  ditches,  &c.,  along 
the  roadside,  while  the  rays  of  a  burning  sun  fairly 
tl  wilted  "  the  troops  down  like  mown  grass.  Very 
little  rest  was  given  when  a  halt  was  made,  and  the 
halts  were  "like  angel's  visits,"  few  and  far  between. 
Frequently  would  the  boys  pass  along  the  request 
for  a  rest  from  the  rear  of  the  column  to  the  right  or 
front,  to  Gen.  Reno.  It  was  no  place  for  a  Union 
soldier  to  straggle  in  any  way,  for  they  were  in  the 
enemy's  country  and  surrounded  by  rebel  citizens 
and  rebel  cavalry  pickets,  and  therefore  the  men 
were  forced  by  necessity  to  request  a  rest  when 
finding  their  strength  failing  them  and  their  inability 
to  keep  up  with  the  more  fortunate. 

On  leaving  the  landing  place,  the  51st  P.  V.  was 
assigned  to  take  the  advance  of  the  whole  column, 
but  it  must  be  here  mentioned  that  the  9th  N.  Y. 

7* 


138     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT. 

(Hawkins'  Zouaves),  had  landed  about  midnight,  and 
were  assigned  a  guide  to  lead  them  on  the  most  di 
rect  road  to  "  South  Mills,"  Camden  County,  N.  C., 
which  is  located  near  the  boundary  betweeir^Torth 
Carolina  and  Virginia.  At  2  o'clock  in  the  morning 
the  9th  N.  Y.  left,  but  from  a  blunder  of  the  guide, 
whether  intentional  or  not  on  his  part,  they  were 
taken  on  a  wrong  road,  making  their  march  some 
ten  or  twelve  miles  further  than  was  necessary ;  but 
at  about  10  A.  M.  they  came  out  on  the  correct  road 
in  the  rear  of  the  column.  At  the  Currituck  Court 
house  cross-roads,  about  twelve  miles  from  the 
landing,  their  colors  could  be  seen  in  the  distance 
approaching,  but  not  distinctly  enough  to  define 
their  nationality,  and  Lieut. -Col.  Bell  not  knowing 
there  were  Union  troops  on  that  road,  but  led  to  be 
lieved  that  the  9th  N.  Y.  was  far  on  his  advance, 
and  no  other  Union  troops  in  that  part  of  the  State, 
he  ordered  a  halt,  and  brought  his  command  to  a 
"  front "  and  formed  a  line  of  battle  in  the  road,  fully 
believing,  as  all  did,  that  the  approaching  troops 
were  none  other  than  the  enemy,  and  a  battle  was 
imminent.  But  after  resting  on  their  arms  some  ten 
or  fifteen  minutes  they  were  discovered  to  be  Union 
troops  of  the  expedition,  supposed  until  then  to  have 
been  near  their  journey's  end  !  On  the  9th  "  coming 
up  "  to  the  column,  all  parties  were  full  of  congratu 
lations  that  they  were  again  united.  The  Zouaves 
on  seeing  the  line  of  battle  formed  in  the  road  were 
"  turning  over  "  in  their  minds  whether  they  should 
fire  a  volley  into  the  column  or  not,  but  finally  con 
cluded  to  "  inarch  on  "  and  see  what  it  was  in  their 
front,  and  to  their  gratification  they  found  them  to 
be  their  old  comrades.  After  a  short  rest,  the  whole 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  139 

column  formed,  with  the  51st  P.  V.  on  the  advance, 
and  the  others  in  the  following  order  :  21st  Mass., 
6th  N.  EL,  89th  N.  Y.,  9th  N.  Hv  and  the  9th  N.  Y. 
Company  A,  under  the  command  of  Capt.  Wm. 
J.  Bolton,  was  sent  on  the  advance  of  the  column  as 
advance  guards,  the  pioneers  marching  along  with 
them  carrying  their  guns  as  well  as  axes.  The 
column  had  passed  through  Currituck  Court-house 
without  many  of  the  citizens  manifesting  any  very 
large  amount  of  affection  for  the  old  flag,  but  on 
reaching  a  point  a  few  miles  north  of  Currituck,  the 
citizens  were  nearly  wild  with  joy  at  the  sight  of  the 
starry  ensign.  Some  went  so  far  in  evincing  their 
sincerity  of  loyalty,  as  to  run  into  their  houses  and 
bring  out  the  United  States  flag,  throwing  it  to  the 
breeze  with  long  continuous  cheers,  accompanied 
with  joyful  exclamations  to  the  passing  troops  of 
"  God  bless  you  !"  "Oh,  how  my  heart  has  ached  and 
yearned  to  see  Union  soldiers  come  !"  "  take  anything 
I  have  !  you  are  welcome  to  it,  God  knows  you  are  !" 
and  many  other  such  like  expressions  could  be  heard 
reverberating  on  the  air  until  lost  in  the  distance t 
but  time  was  too  precious  to  be  lost  in  awaiting  to 
reply  to  the  enthusiasm  of  the  citizens,  and  the 
column  pushed  on  through  the  scorching  sun,  the 
dense  clouds  of  dust  and  the  stifling  atmosphere,  un 
til  near  1  o'clock  P.  M.,  when  for  the  lack  of  water 
the  troops  begged  of  Gen.  Keno  to  give  them  a  rest^ 
and  let  them  have  a  chance  to  hunt  some  water,  and 
get  something  to  eat — for  no  one  had  had  anything 
to  eat  since  leaving  the  vessels.  But  in  reply  to  the 
request  of  his  men,  Gen.  Reno,  who  had  spied  a  large 
woods  about  half  a  mile  ahead  of  him,  behind  a 
dense  column  of  smoke,  pointed  to  the  woods  and 


140     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FLKST   REGIMENT 

said,  "  when  we  get  there  I'll  halt  long  enough  to 
get  dinner  ;"  but  the  sound  of  his  words  had  not  died 
on  his  lips,  when  to  his  and  everybody  else's  sur 
prise,  a  twelve-pounder  cannon  solid-shot  struck  in 
the  centre  of  road,  close  in  among  Co.  A  boys,  and 
ricochetting  over  the  general's  head  landed  in  a 
field  on  the  left  of  the  road  ;  but  before  it.  was  done 
rolling,  another  !  and  still  another  !  came,  and  then 
shell  began  to  screech  through  the  air,  and  in  less 
time  than  it  takes  my  pen  to  tell  it,  the  air  was  filled 
with  shot,  shell,  grape  and  canister.  Three  or  four 
pieces  of  light  artillery  had  been  put  in  battery  across 
the  road  at  the  edge  of  the  woods,  but  concealed  by 
the  thick  foliage  of  the  forest,  and  it  was  some  time 
before  their  exact  location  could  be  discovered  by 
Gen.  Eeno  and  staff. 

The  expedition  had  a  marine  battery  of  two  3-inch 
guns,  pulled  along  by  the  troops,  which  were  quickly 
placed  in  battery,  with  Cos.  A  and  F  as  their  sup 
port.  The  remainder  of  the  regiment  "filed  right" 
into  a  cornfield,  came  to  a  u  front,"  and  formed  line 
of  battle  in  plain  view  and  easy  range  of  the  rebel 
guns,  but  so  thick  and  fast  were  solid  shot  and  shell 
poured  into  the  regiment  that  it  was  found  impos 
sible  to  remain  in  that  position  any  length  of  time; 
consequently,  the  line  began  to  waver  under  such 
rapid  firing,  and  at  last  was  ordered  to  get  under 
cover  of  a  thick  woods  on  the  far  side  of  the  corn 
field.  The  51st  P.  V.  had  been  nearly  a  half  a  mile 
in  advance  of  the  main  column  during  the  latter 
part  of  the  march,  and  therefore  had  to  bear  the  en 
tire  brunt  of  the  opening  of  the  battle,  for  it  was 
fully  half  an  hour  after  the  first  shot  was  fired  be 
fore  any  of  the  other  troops  came  up. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS. 

After  the  whole  column  had  taken  shelter  in  the 
woods,  the  men  sank  down  to  the  earth  from  sheer 
exhaustion,  and  no  threats,  persuasion,  or  any  other 
means  could  induce  the  men  to  rise  upon  their 
feet  until  they  had  a  rest.  Gen.  Eeno  and  Lieut. 
Col.  Bell  did  all  in  their  power  to  get  the  troops 
up  and  in  line,  but  all  to  no  purpose;  so  completely 
worn  down  from  excessive  heat  and  thirst,  long  and 
rapid  marching,  and  without  food,  the  entire  body 
of  troops  was  more  dead  than  alive,  and  as  they 
could  not  see  a  rebel,  they  concluded  that  there 
were  but  few  of  them,  and  they  could  afford  to  take 
a  rest,  and  soon  settle  it  after  being  refreshed. 

Up  to  this  time  the  enemy  had  not  fired  a  single 
musket,  but  kept  themselves  closely  concealed  in  a 
very  deep,  wide  ditch,  which  they  were  using  as  a 
sort  of  breastwork.  All  the  buildings  between  the 
two  lines  had  been  fired  by  the  rebels,  for  the  ex 
press  purpose  of  aiding  them  to  more  perfectly  ob 
scure  themselves  from  the  vision  of  the  approaching 
forces,  by  raising  many  heavy  columns  of  black 
smoke.  And  no  doubt  it  was  intended  by  the  enemy 
for  Burnside's  forces  to  fall  into  an  ambuscade  and 
"  get  gobbled  up."  After  the  men  had  rested  a  little, 
the  51st  P.  V.  again  jumped  to  their  feet,  and  were 
soon  moving  toward  the  enemy's  left  flank,  for  the 
purpose  of  capturing  the  rebel  guns,  but  when, 
within  about  thirty  yards  of  the  concealed  foe  in  the 
ditch,  it  received  a  terrific  volley  of  musketry,  that 
brought  them  to  a  sudden  halt.  For  the  purpose  of 
reconnoitering  the  woods  and  finding  out  the  enemy's 
true  position  and  strength,  Cos.  A  and  F,  under 
command  of  Captain  Bolton,  immediately  deployed 
us  skirmishers,  but  had  proceeded  only  a  lew  yards 


142      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

when  they  found  themselves  at  right  angles  with  the 
ditch,  on  the  enemy's  left.  The  enemy  was  now 
discovered,  and  their  strength  pretty  correctly  esti 
mated. 

The  regiment  was  now  formed  in  line  of  battle 
and  marched  up  to  a  fence  running  at  right  angles 
with  the  ditch,  and  on  the  outskirts  of  the  woods, 
followed  by  that  noble  regiment,  the  21st  Mass., 
which  took  up  a  position  on  the  right  of  the  51st 
P.  Y.  When  Major  Schall  gave  the  command 
"Boys,  let  'em  have  it,  and  do  it  right  for  them,1 
the  woods  echoed  far  and  near  with  the  reverbera 
tions  of  volleys  of  musketry  that  were  poured  in 
rapid  succession  into  the  enemy's  columns,  soon  un- 
ditching  and  causing  them  to  take  shelter  behind  the 
huge  pine  trees,  but  on  making  themselves  visible, 
and  being  uniformed  in  "  blue  "  clothing,  of  which 
they  had  lately  captured  large  quantities,  it  gave  rise 
to  the  cry  among  the  21st  Mass.,  "  Cease  firing,  51st ; 
you  are  firing  on  our  own  men!"  Major  Schall  or 
dered  the  color  bearers  to  hold  up  the  colors,  that 
our  friends  might  see  who  we  were !  But  no  sooner 
were  the  colors  shown  than  the  enemy  poured  volley 
after  volley  into  the  51st.  Major  Schall  being  now 
fully  satisfied  that  they  were  no  friends  of  his,  he 
again  ordered  his  command  to  "  pour  it  into  them, 
again,  and  don't  cease  firing  as  long  as  you  can  see 
a  'Johnny!'"  which  command  was  cheerfully  and 
scrupulously  complied  with.  The  battle  now  raged 
violently,  the  51st  P.  V.  and  the  21st  Mass,  doing 
terrible  execution.  The  9th  N.  Y.  (Zouaves)  at  this 
juncture  undertook  to  make  a  charge  at  a  distance 
of  over  half  a  mile,  in  a  clear  field,  and  in  plain  and 
easy  range  of  the  enemy's  guns,  but  did  not  succeed 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      143 

in  reaching   the    enemy's  position,  being  repulsed 
with  terrible  slaughter  and  thrown  into  great  confu 
sion.    A  most  murderous  fire  from  the  rebel  battery 
and   musketry   was  concentrated    on   the   charging 
column.     The  marine   battery,  which  accompanied 
the  expedition,  replied  with  telling  effect,  but  not 
sufficient  to  silence  any  of  the  enemy's  guns;  there 
fore  that  brave  and  energetic  band  of  heroes  were 
forced  to  submit  to  a  repulse.    Although  their  ranks 
were  terribly  thinned,  yet  their  bravery  was  worthy 
of  emulation  and   great   praise.     At   this  juncture 
the  6th  N.  H.,  which  had  been  posted  on  the  left  of 
the  road,  and  was  on  the  enemy's  right  flank,  made 
a  charge  across  a  large  field,  firing  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  volleys,  while  they  were  double-quicking, 
that  was  possible   for  a  set  of  the  best  drilled  and 
disciplined  troops  to  have  fired.     So  precise  wa^  the 
discharge  that  it  sounded  as  if  one  man  had  pulled 
the  triggers  of  all  the  guns  at  one  pressure  of  the 
finger.     As  soon  as  the  6th  N.  H.  fired  the  volley 
they  halted,  when  the  51st  P.  V.  jumped  over  the 
worm  fence  which  they  had  used  as  a  sort  of  rude 
breastworks,  charged  on   the  enemy  in  fine   style, 
carried  the  enemy's  position,  the  battle  ending  by 
the  retreating  of  the  enemy,   who  fled   on  the  ap 
proach  of  the  51st,  leaving  a  few  of  their  dead  and 
wounded  on  the  field  ;  but  they  had  succeeded  in 
bearing   off    a   large   number    of    their   dead    and 
wounded    companions    before    the    51st    made   the 
charge.     The  rebel  forces  proved  to  be  the  3d  Geor 
gia  regiment,  1,800   strong,  and  different  independ 
ent    battalions,   all   under    the   command   of  Brig. 
Gen.   Branch,   of   South    Carolina.     After   arriving 
on  the  spot  that  had  just  been  in  possession  of  the 


HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

enemy,  the  51st  began  the  humane  work  of  gath 
ering  up  the  wounded  of  both  sides,  caring  for  them 
alike,  and  putting  them  under  the  charge  of  the  va 
rious  surgeons,  who  had  established  a  hospital  in  a 
farm  house  which  stood  on  the  battle- field.  As 
soon  as  the  wounded  were  cared  for,  the  dead  of 
both  armies  were  gathered  together  for  burial.  A 
wagon  loaded  heavily  with  intrenching  tools  had 
accompanied  the  expedition,  but  as  it  was  found 
necessary  to  return  again  that  night  in  perfect  quiet 
ness,  General  Reno  ordered  the  51st  P.  V.  to  select 
a  suitable  spot  to  conceal  the  tools,  for  two  reasons, 
viz.:  One  was,  that  the  road  was  in  too  bad  a  condi 
tion  to  haul  them  back  to  the  transports,  and  they 
would  have  to  be  abandoned  on  the  way  there.  The 
other  reason  was,  that  he  had  received  information 
from  some  citizens  that  the  enemy  was  being  largely 
reinforced  for  the  purpose  of  attacking  him  again 
that  night.  Hence,  for  the  purpose  of  getting  away 
quietly  from  the  battle-ground,  it  was  deemed  best 
to  bury  the  tools  to  avoid  the  rattling  noise  incident 
to  the  jolting  of  a  wagon  over  a  rough  road. 

About  4  P.  M.  the  various  regiments  "stacked 
arms"  for  the  purpose  of  cooking  whatever  the  men 
might  have  along  with  them  to  eat,  and  as  there 
were  no  signs  indicative  of  a  move  to  the  men,  the 
greater  number  of  them  began  to  hunt  up  places  to 
lie  down  to  rest  themselves  and  also  to  sleep,  after 
the  great  fatigue  of  the  day/  Before  the  battle  was 
over  it  began  to  rain,  and  the  battle-field  being 
located  in  a  very  low  place  caused  the  water  to  seek 
its  level  in  among  the  troops.  By  the  time  fires 
were  made  the  ground  had  become  so  saturated  that 
it  was  with  difficulty  that  the  men  could  find  a  place 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      145 

to  lie  down,  for,  be  it  known,  in  those  days  the 
D'Abri  tents  were  not  introduced  ;  only  a  few  of  the 
more  fortunate  ones  possessed  such  an  invaluable 
thing  as  a  gum  or  oil-cloth  blanket,  and  therefore 
they  were  unable  to  shelter  themselves  from  the  in 
clemency  of  the  weather.  By  night-fall,  however, 
the  51st  had  snugly  ensconced  itself  in  the  woods 
wherein  it  had  fought  its  full  share  of  the  battle, 
and  was  enjoying  itself  in  "tired  nature's  sweet  re 
storer,  balmy  sleep,"  after  sending  out  quite  a  strong 
picket.  But  about  8  P.  M.,  while  all — no,  not  all, 
for  Maj.  Schall  did  not  indulge  in  the  much-coveted 
luxury — were  asleep  in  fancied  security,  an  order 
was  issued  from  headquarters  to  "  fall  in  and  return 
to  the  transports,  withdrawing,  the  pickets  at  the 
same  time."  Consequently,  Maj.  Schall  went  along 
the  line  and  issued  his  orders  to  the  officers  and 
men  <c  to  get  up  and  put  on  their  things  as  quietly 
as  possible,  for  the  enemy  were  trying  to  surround 
us,  and  it  was  necessary  to  not  talk  above  a  whisper 
and  to  prevent  tincups  and  canteens  from  clashing  or 
making  the  least  noise."  On  the  men  being  awakened 
their  ideas  seemed  to  be  in  a  tumult  of  confusion, 
for  being  asleep  when  the  orders  were  issued,  they 
could  not  understand  the  almost  inaudib'e  whisper, 
the  cat-like  tread,  and  the  entire  stillness  of  those 
already  up  putting  on  their  accoutrements;  but  the 
truth  soon  flashed  across  their  minds  that  it  was  a 
retreat,  and  also  that  the  regiment  was  in  a  very 
precarious  situation.  As  each  man  hurriedly  put 
•on  his  equipments  he  cautiously  stepped  out  of  the 
woods  and  took  his  position  on  the  color  line, 
greatly  lamenting  that  he  had  been  disturbed  before 
he  got  his  "sleep  out."  By  9  P.  M.  the  51st  were 


146     HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFLAY-FIK3T    REGIMENT 

all  in  line  and  ready  for  the  return  march  back  to 
the  transports,  where  they  were  "bound  to  sleep 
until  the  old  tub  arrived  at  Newbern."  The  51st 
had  not  to  wait  long  before  the  order  to  "move  on" 
was  given,  and  off  it  started,  across  the  battle-field 
to  the  public  road  leading  to  Currituck  Court-house. 
A  deep  wide  ditch  ran  diagonally  across  the  field  and 
the  darkness  of  the  night  comparing  favorably  with 
the  Egyptian  darkness,  which  could  be  felt,  the  men 
were  unable  to  see  the  ditch,  and  scarcely  twenty 
men  out  of  the  whole  regiment  escaped  plunging 
headlong  into  its  depths.  On  arriving  at  the  road 
another  invisible  ditch  was  there  to  receive  them, 
but  the  boys  took  their  misfortunes  all  in  good  part, 
without  uttering  a  single  murmur  or  allowing  them 
selves  to  crack  a  joke  above  a  whisper ;  but  had 
their  troubles  ended  there  at  the  ditches  all  would 
soon  have  been  forgotten,  but  such  was  not  the  case, 
for  the  road,  which  had  been  so  filled  with  dust  in 
the  forenoon,  had  now,  from  the  falling  rain,  become 
a  vast  bed  of  mortar.  Yes,  worse  than  any  bed  of 
mortar  could  be  made!  for  the  road  was  full  of 
chuck-holes  ten  to  thirty  inches  deep,  and  certainly 
not  ten  feet  apart,  and  all  filled  with  thin,  watery 
mud,  and  the  mire  itself  of  an  unctuous  nature, 
caused  men  and  horses  to  slip  as  if  trying  to  walk 
down  a  steep  hill  on  very  smooth  ice.  Considerable 
delay  was  occasioned  on  the  first  mile  of  the  road 
from  the  inability  of  the  officers  to  find  their  picket 
posts.  As  everything  had  to  be  done  by  whispers 
their  whereabouts  was  difficult  to  ascertain.  How 
ever,  all  had  been  relieved  before  11  P.  M.  and  then 
the  line  of  march  began  in  earnest.  The  51st, 
acting  as  rear-guard  to  the  column,  plunged  its  way 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       147 

through  the  mud  without  scarcely  a  whisper  or  a 
rest  until  it  arrived  at  Currituck  Court-house,  then 
three  miles  from  the  landing.  The  pioneer  corps  of 
the  51st  cut  away  the  wooden  bridge  which  spanned 
the  Dismal  Swamp  Canal  as  soon  as  the  regiment 
passed  over  it,  to  prevent  the  enemy  from  pursuing 
them  should  they  feel  inclined  to  do  so. 

On  arriving  at  Currituck  Court-house,  the  boys 
visited  the  jail,  and  opened  all  thj  cell  doors,  and  let 
the  convicts  escape.  While  a  portion  were  attend 
ing  to  the  release  of  the  prisoners,  another  party 
had  entered  a  well-stocked  store,  nearly  opposite  the 
prison,  that  was  kept  by  one  of  the  most  bitter  seces 
sionists  extant,  and  in  almost  the  same  time  as  it 
takes  me  to  tell  it  here,^  the  store  was  cleaned  of 
everything  from  a  penny  whistle  to  a  hogshead  of 
molasses;  store  goods  of  all  kinds,  dry  goods,  hard 
ware,  groceries,  trimmings,  liquors,  smoked  and 
dried  meats,  boots,  shoes,  hats,  and  furniture  of  all 
kinds,  were  seized  and  borne  away  by  the  men  who 
were  scarcely  able  to  get  along  even  without  their 
guns;  in  fact,  some  of  the  men  became  so  jaded  out, 
that,  in  order  to  keep  up  with  the  regiment,  they 
threw  away  guns,  cartridge-boxes,  belts,  haversacks, 
canteens,  &c.,  to  prevent  themselves  from  lagging 
behind !  Currituck  was  reached  by  daybreak  of  the 
20th  of  April,  and  the  51st  arrived  at  the  landing  point 
at  or  a  few  minutes  before  sunrise,  thereby  making 
the  hard  march  of  forty-two  miles  inside  of  twenty- 
four  hours,  besides  fighting  a  battle,  gathering  the 
killed  and  wounded,  burying  the  dead  and  a  wagon- 
load  of  tools,  caring  for  the  wounded,  and  taking  at 
least  two  hours  and  a  half  of  sleep.  I  must  here  state 
that  the  wounded  had  to  be  left  at  the  hospital  for 


148     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

the  want  of  conveyances,  and  consequently  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  enemy  on   the   morning   after  the 
battle.     They  were  left  in  charge  of  a  couple  of  sur 
geons,  who  were  left  behind  either  by  casting  lots  or 
volunteering,  as  it  was  well    known    whoever    did 
remain  with  the  wounded  would  be  taken  prisoners 
along  with  their  patients.     Lieut.  Lewis  Hallman,  of 
Co.  D,  who  received  a  severe  and  nearly  fatal  wound 
in  the  thigh,  by  a  grape-shot  passing  through  it,  was 
the  only  wounded  officer  of  the  51st  P.  V.  that  was 
left  behind.     Those  who  were  slightly  wounded  and 
were  able  to  hobble  along  did   not  remain  at  the 
hospital,    preferring  to  risk  going    along    with  the 
regiment,  than  to  remain   behind  and   fall   into  the 
hands  of  the  rebels  as   captives.     No    tongue    can. 
express   the    pain  and  torture  those  poor  sufferers 
experienced  in  their  midnight  march  over  such  an 
abominable  road,  which  taxed  the  energies  of  all  who 
were  in  health    and    sound  in  limbs.     Those    who 
were  taken  prisoners  were  most  shamefully  used  by 
their  captors,  whose  surgeons  insisted  on  amputating 
-limbs  where  it  was  known  to  be  unnecessary,  and  it 
was  only  through  the  unconquerable  spirit  and  em 
phatic  refusal  by  the  wounded   that  they  were  al 
lowed  to  retain  their  mangled  limbs.     They  suffered 
enough,  God  knows  !  from  neglect  and  scanty  allow 
ances  of  food,  without  being  inhumanly  deprived  of 
their  limbs. 

The  loss  in  killed  and  wounded  was  as  follows : 


Co.  A. — Wounded — Privates  Monroe  Nice,  slightly;  John 
Lure,  slightly  ;  Harvey  Pinch,  slightly  ;  Joseph  H.  Zearioss,  se 
verely. 

Co.  B. — Lewis  H.  Young,  wounded  and  taken  prisoner. 

Co.  C. — Wounded — Privates  Abraham  Custer,  severely  ; 
John  Plunkett,  \vounded  and  captured. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      149 

Co.  D. — 1st  Lieut.  Lewis  Hallman,  wounded  in  the  thigh  se 
verely  and  taken  prisoner. 

Co.  E. — Killed — Privates  Benjamin  II.  Brouse  and  Wm.  R. 
Hoffman. 

Co.  F. — Wounded  and  taken  prisoner — Private  Nathaniel 
Casselman. 

Co.  G. — Wounded — Privates  Theophilus  Baird  and  James 
Powers. 

Co.  H. — 1st  Lieut.  George  Shorkley,  acting  adjutant ;  privates 
H.  Colej''  McCormick,  Jacob  Buskirk,  Jacob  Lennig. 

Co.  I. — Adam  Robinson,  killed  by  a  minie  ball ;  Abraham 
Wampole,  wounded  in  the  chin  by  a  buckshot,  slightly  ;  Corp. 
Richard  Martin,  wounded  in  the  back  by  a  solid  shot  (12- 
pounder, )  painful  but  not  serious  ;  private  Lewis  Patterson, 
slightly  on  the  lips. 

Co.  K.— None.* 


CHAPTEK    IX. 

Skulkers  on  board  the  Admiral — Escape  from  a  solid  shot — 
A  beautiful  country— The  steamer  aground — Col.  Hartranft's 
return — Col.  Bolt  on 's  merits  as  an  officer — Bets  on  soon 
getting  home — Skulkers  wearing  the  barrel — Orders  to 
march — First  issue  of  oil-cloth  blankets — Extracting  whiskey 
from  a  cask. 

AFTER  arriving  at  the  landing  the  51st  began  to 
embark  again  on  board  of  the  Admiral,  which  rode 
at  anchor  between  200  and  300  yards  from  shore, 
compelling  the  men  to  wade  out  to  her  in  water  of 
4J  feet  depth,  and  on  going  on  board,  the  greatest 
indignation  was  evinced  by  those  brave  boys  at 
finding  some  of  their  "  tuould-\>Q  companions  "  who, 
to  their  eternal  disgrace  be  it  said,  had  skulked  back 
to  the  vessel  when  the  regiment  had  started  on  the 
expedition  the  morning  before.  That  they  went 
ashore  when  the  regiment  did  cannot  be  denied,  but 
they  were  not  ashore  more  than  a  few  seconds  when 
the  gunboats  commenced  shelling  the  woods  that 

*  The  total  of  killed  and  wounded  at  Camclen,  by  official  re 
port,  is  30  officers  and  men;  but  the  casualties  are  not  en 
tered  on  the  rolls,  and  the  names  of  all  cannot  be  entered  on 
the  rompanv  lists  of  their  respective  losses. 


150     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

skirted  either  side  of  the  Dismal  Swamp  canal^and 
those  things,  sometimes  inappropriately  termed  men, 
began  to  quake  with  fear  and  sought  safety  in  the 
staterooms  of  the  steamer,  while  the  true  soldiers 
were  risking  their  lives  and  doing  their  share  of  the 
work  that  all  were  paid  alike  for  doing.  During 
the  battle  some  ten  or  twelve  of  those  cowardly 
"shysters"  had  taken  refuge  in  the  rear  of  the 
building  which  was  afterwards  used  as  a  hospital, 
until  a  couple  of  solid  shot  passed  through  the  house, 
admonishing  them  that  danger  lurked  there  also. 
Had  their  unmanly  conduct  as  cowards  ended  by 
"shysting,"  to  use  an  army  phrase,  it  would  not 
have  entailed  such  a  stigma  on  their  chicken  hearted 
characters ;  but  after  the  hospital  was  fairly  estab 
lished,  those  things,  under  the  pretext  of  assisting  to 
dress  the  wounds  of  the  sufferers,  stole  whatever 
liquors  and  stimulants  the  surgeons  had  with  them 
to  assist  in  the  discharge  of  their  field  duties.  Let 
me  in  all  candor  ask  what  punishment  would  be  suf 
ficient  for  such  scoundrels?  "No  milder  name  can 
be  given  those  men  who  not  only  kept  out  of  harm's 
way  while  their  comrades  did  the  fighting,  but  could 
stoop  so  low  as  to  steal  the  few  drops  of  liquor  that 
were  so  highly  necessary  to  stimulate  the  wounded 
sufferers.  May  those  base  acts  committed  awaken  such 
a  remorse  of  conscience  that  will  never  allow  them 
one  moment's  peace,  either  in  this  world  or  the  next 
to  come.  Some  of  those  men  belong  to  highly  re 
spectable  families,  and  for  their  families'  sake  I  shall 
forbear  making  their  names  public,  as  I  do  not  want 
the  innocent  to  have  a  share  in  the  disgrace  of  such 
unworthy  wretches.  But,  thank  heaven  !  the  worst 
of  the  above  party  are,  at  this  writing,  (Jan.  17th, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.       151 

1866,)  in  prison,  complying  with  the  sentence  of  a 
court  martial  held  at  Blain's  Cross  Roads,  in  East 
Tennessee,  (about  the  time  the  51st  re-enlisted  in 
1864,)  which  was  convened  by  order  of  Col.  Har- 
tranft,  who  was  then  in  command  of  the  2d  Divi 
sion,  9th  Army  Corps.  While  companies  A  and  F 
were  supporting  the  marine  battery,  Charles  Hen- 
niss,  of  Co.  A,  was  sitting  on  the  top  of  a  pile  of 
fence-rails,  within  300  or  400  yards  of  the  enemy's 
guns,  while  they  were  shelling  the  Union  troops. 
Capt.  Bolton  warned  him  of  his  dangerous  position 
and  ordered  him  to  get  into  a  safer  place.  Henniss 
rose  up  to  comply  with  the  order,  and  had  just  left 
the  rail-pile,  when  a  twelve-pounder  solid  shot  struck 
the  very  spot  he  had  been  sitting  on,  hurling  the 
rails  in  all  directions  as  if  they  were  a  pile  of  chaff' 
in  a  hurricane.  His  timely  compliance  with  Capt. 
Bolton's  order  without  a  doubt  saved  his  life. 

The  appearance  of  the  country  in  that  part  of 
North  Carolina,  at  that  season  of  the  year,  was  most 
enchanting,  especially  in  the  neighborhood  of  Curri- 
tuck  Court-house.  The  face  of  the  country  is  level 
as  a  floor;  soil  of  a  light  sandy  loam  ;  the  principal 
productions  corn,  tobacco  and  cotton.  Turpentine 
and  rosin  are  articles  of  exportation,  and  nearly 
every  large  plantation  manufactured  the  latter  arti 
cles  to  a  greater  or  less  extent.  Close  to  the  landing 
place  was  a  field  of  red  clover,  that  certainly  exceeded 
anything  of  the  kind  the  writer  ever  saw  in  the  most 
fertile  spots  in  Pennsylvania,  New  York,  or  any  of 
the  Western  or  Southwestern  States  ;  it  was  only  a 
type  of  the  fertility  of  the  soil  in  that  whole  section 
of  country.  Yet  with  a  rich  soil  arid  handsome  farms 
in  every  way,  the  citizens  all  wore  the  appearance 


152     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

of  a  thriftless,  careless,  indolent  set  of  people,  who 
only  lived  for  a  day  at  a  time.  Only  here  and  there 
could  be  seen  a  worm  fence  in  passable  condition. 
The  houses,  being  frame  ones,  were  mostly  in  a  very 
dilapidated  condition,  for  be  it  known  that  through 
out  the  whole  South,  if  one  end  of  a  weather-board 
becomes  loose,  instead  of  using  a  little  energy  by 
putting  a  nail  in  it,  the  board  is  allowed  to  swing 
in  the  wind  until  its  pendulosity  breaks  or  knocks 
off'  two  or  three  others,  or  breaks  itself  loose  from  the 
other  end  and  drops  to  the  ground,  where  it  is  more 
certain  to  remain  until  it  rots  than  it  is  of  ever  being 
used  even  for  firewood,  unless  another  rebellion 
should  break  out  and  the  "  Yankees  "  get  down  there 
again.  Very  few,  comparatively  speaking,  of  the 
houses  have  cellars  under  them,  being  all  built  up 
twelve  to  eighteen  inches  off'  of  the  ground.  The 
denizens  all  say  they  have  no  need  of  under  ground 
rooms,  for  their  winters  are  of  too  mild  a  character 
to  freeze  anything,  and  for  that  reason  they  have  no 
need  for  cellars,  and  I  suspect  there  is  some  truth  in 
it,  or  at  least  in  a  great  many  cases  ;  one  thing  pretty 
certain  is,  they  don't  have  much  of  anything  by  the 
time  winter  sets  in  to  freeze,  unless  it  is  a  few  sweet 
potatoes.  It  must  not  be  taken  as  granted  that  the 
above  was  written  in  a  spirit  of  disparagement  of 
that  country,  far  from  it,  for  the  writer,  during  the 
whole  travels  of  the  51st,  both  South  and  West,  did 
not  see  a  place  that  fascinated  him  as  much  as  North 
Carolina,  and  in  all  sincerity  he  believes  that  a  little 
Northern  tact  and  enterprise  could,  aye  and  would 
make  it  one  of  the  most  productive  States  in  the 
Union. 

On    Sunday    morning,    April  20,   1862,   the    51st 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUXTKKRS.  153 

again  embarked  on  board  of  the  Admiral,  for  its  re 
turn  to  Newbern.  After  expressing  very  freely 
their  feelings  to  the  skulkers  for  their  cowardly  con 
duct,  the  worn-out  heroes  laid  themselves  down  to 
get  a  little  sleep  after  such  an  exciting  and  laborious 
march  as  that  which  they  had  just  ended.  The 
Adjutant  immediately  visited  the  different  com 
panies  to  ascertain  the  casualties  of  each,  and  made 
out  his  report  of  the  result  for  headquarters.  At  10 
A.  M.,  steam  being  up,  the  51st  left,  and  running 
aground  within  sight  of  Roanoke  Island,  had  to  re 
main  so  all  that  night.  The  next  morning  (the  21st) 
three  tugs  were  sent  to  haul  the  Admiral  off,  which 
they  succeeded  in  doing  by  10  A.  M.,  when  the 
Admiral  again  got  under  headway,  and  with  cau 
tious  running  reached  Brant  Island  Shoals  about  8 
P.  M.,  where,  owing  to  the  intense  darkness  and  the 
destruction  of  the  light  boat,  which  was  used  in 
lieu  of  a  light  house,  she  dropped  her  bow  anchors 
and  laid  over  for  the  night. 

Next  morning  at  daybreak  the  Admiral  received 
the  signal  from  the  signal  corps  to  prepare  to  leave, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  thereafter  she  was  again  dash 
ing  aside  the  spray  of  Pamlico  Sound,  and  entered 
the  mouth  of  the  Neuse,  heading  for  the  city  of 
Newbern,  where  she  arrived  the  same  day  at  4  p.  M. 
On  nearing  the  wharf  the  boys  caught  a  glimpse  of 
a  tall,  commanding  form,  surrounded  by  a  vast  con 
course  of  soldiers  and  citizens  who  had  assembled 
to  greet  the  returning  braves  once  more  among 
them.  An  enthusiast  proposed,  "Three  cheers  and 
a  'Tiger'  for  Old  Johnny  !  "  For,  sure  enough,  there 
he  stood,  respected  and  beloved  by  his  command. 
What  he  thought  or  felt  when  he  was  assailed  by 

8 


154     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

such  deafening  shouts,  none  but  himself  can  tell. 
He  had  returned  from  his  leave  of  absence  but  a 
couple  of  days  too  late  to  please  his  boys.  Often, 
very  often  could  they  be  heard  to  say,  "  I  wish  to 
God,  Old  Johnny  had  been  with  us  !  "  Their  con 
fidence  in  him  as  a  leader  was  unbounded,  and  they 
felt  and  thought,  had  he  been  with  them,  greater  re 
sults  would  have  attended  the  "demonstration  on 
Norfolk."  There  always  appealed  an  undefinable 
desire  with  the  boys  to  have  Col.  Hartranft  with 
them  when  going  into  battle.  The  writer  has  often 
heard  the  boys  say  that  if  they  should  be  killed 
with  "  Old  Johnny ,"  leading  them,  they  were  satis 
fied  to  die,  for  they  believed  in  him,  his  courage  and 
cool  judgment,  to  such  an  extent,  that  if  they  were 
killed  under  him  they  could  not  have  escaped  death 
under  any  other  commander.  Yet  he  was  not  so 
idolized  when  in  camp,  for  they  all  feared  him.  But 
when  it  came  to  the  time  that  "tried  men's  souls,'' 
then  he  was  looked  upon  as  something  almost  super 
natural  by  them,  for  he  could  not  ask  them  to  do 
any  daring  feat  but  what  they  were  willing,  aye, 
eager  to  do  his  bidding,  well  knowing  that  he  would 
ask  nothing  of  them  to  do  that  he  had  not  the  cour 
age  to  do  himself.  It  cannot  be  said  that  the  writer 
is  influenced  by  partiality  or  prejudice  in  Col.  Har- 
tranft's  favor,  as  I  am  not,  and  all  who  know  me  and 
my  relations  with  him  will"  bear  me  witness.  But 
I  cannot  help  but  admire  the  sublimity  of  the  hero, 
the  bravery,  the  cool,  calm,  sound  judgment  of  the 
commander,  the  resolution  and  daring  of  the  soldier, 
and  the  high  intelligence  of  the  gentleman.  These 
traits  of  character  stand  out  in  such  bold  contrast 
with  those  of  so  many  other  officers,  that  I  would 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  155 

not  be  doing  justice  to  an  able  officer  and  a  brave 
regiment  were  I  to  either  say  auglit  contrary  to  what 
I  have  said,  or  remain  silent  and  pass  lightly  over  his 
many  virtues.  His  successor,  Col.  William  Jordan 
Bolton,  is  a  soldier  well-fitted  to  fill  Col.  Hartranft's 
place,  and  all  that  I  have  said  in  regard  to  Col.  Har- 
tranft  I  can  say  for  -Col.  Bolton,  with  the  exception 
that  the  warmest  friendship  exists  between  us,  which 
was  not  the  case  with  Col.  Hartranft  and  m  yself.  Col. 
Bolton,  like  Lieut.-Col.  Schall,  could  command  a 
regiment  till  doomsday  without  making  one  enemy. 
Yet  when  the  boys  would  see  "  Billy,"  as  he  was 
called,  give  his  head  a  shake,  they  loo  well  knew  its 
import.  It  was  a  sure  sign  of  determination,  a  reso 
lution  formed  that  no  earthly  opposition  could 
break.  If  "  Billy  "  would  say  that  such  a  position 
had  to  be  obtained  and  would  give  his  head  a  shake, 
that  was  enough  ;  all  understood  that  the  work  was 
half  done  already,  for  that  "shake"  indicated  that 
cost  what  it  would,  it  must  be  accomplished.  I  will 
here  cite  an  instance,  although  this  is  not  its  pro 
per  place.  After  the  charge  on  the  enemy's  works 
in  front  of  Petersburg,  Va.,  on  the  18th  of  June, 
1864,  Col.  Bolton  had  issued  orders  to  Capt  Bolton 
to  take  up  a  space  that  was  unoccupied  on  the  left 
of  the  51st  picket  line;  it  had  been  tried  for  two  or 
three  nights  by  several  other  regiments,  but  being  so 
hazardous  it  could  not  be  accomplished.  Col. Bolton 
said  it  could  be  done,  and  gave  his  head  that  well- 
known  shake  which  the  boj^s  all  understood,  and 
which  signified  that  he  intended  it  should  be  done, 
even  had  he  to  go  and  take  it  himself;  but  Capt. 
Bolton  was  the  man  to  do  it,  if  it  was  a  human  pos 
sibility,  and  that  same  night  it  was  done  in  a  perfect 


156     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

tempest  of  shot,  shell  and  musketry  from  the  rebel 
works,  that  were  only  75  to  80  yards  distant.  To 
wards  the  close  of  the  month  of  April,  1862,  mails 
nivived  from  the  North  nearly  every  day,  which 
brought  papers  giving  succinct  accounts  of  the  prog 
ress  of  the  rebellion,  which  were  of  a  very  cheering 
character,  and  all  began  to  think  that  a,i  order  to 
send  the  troops  home  would  certainly  be  issued  in  a 
few  days.  So  firmly  seated  was  this  belief  in  the 
minds  of  all  the  officers  and  men  that  bets  of  $50  and 
§100  were  freely  offered  that  the  troops  of  the  Burn- 
side  expedition  would  all  be  home  by  the  1st  of 
July  of  that  year.  We  will  here  insert  an  extract 
from  a  private  letter  dated  "  Camp  Franklin,  New- 
bern,  N.  Cv  April  29th,  1862,"  to  show  how  much 
the  soldiers'  minds  were  centred  on  soon  going  home. 
"  We  are  all  waiting  for  a  mail  to  come,  so  we  may 
see  how  much  nearer  the  time  is  for  us  to  go  home  ! 
Home  is  now  the  conversation  from  morning  till 
night  and  from  night  till  morning.  On  guard,  on 
drill,  lounging  in  tents,  pioneering,  policing,  march 
ing,  and  at  everything  else,  the  whole  talk  is  home  ! 
home  !  !  home  ! !  !  We  are  anxious  for  the  papers  of 
this  mail  to  see  if  the  taking  of  Yorktown  is  an 
accomplished  fact,  as  we  are  all  ready  now  for  the 
rebels  to  retreat  from  there  to  us  here,  for  we  are 
now  good  enough  to  oppose  250,000.  Our  great 
fort  (Totten)  here  is  done,  and  I  tell  you  it  is  one  of 
the  forts ;  with  it  and  the  aid  of  the  gunboats  we  are 
ready  for  the  enemy  to  retreat  to  this  place  just  as 
soon  as  McClellan  is  ready  to  rout  them  out  of 
Virginia,  for  it  is  known  that  'Little  Mac '  has  been 
merely  killing  time  in  that  State  for  the  purpose  of 
keeping  the  rebels  there  until  we  were  ready,  and 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTKEUS.  157 

now  everything  is  ready,  I  hope  he  will  rout  them 
and  drive  them,  as  expected,  right  into  our  arms. 
Let  them  come,  and  if  they  don't  find  themselves 
in  a  hornet's  nest  then  my  judgment  won't  be  worth 
much,  that's  all.  I  hope  they  may  come  yet  to-day, 
for  it  will  be  the  finish  ing  stroke  to  the  rebellion, 
and  then  pack  up  and  go  home  !  to  enjoy  the  com 
forts  of  an  honorable  peace." 

Although  the  enemy  were  not  driven  toNewbern 
as  an  extremity,  the  thoughts  of  soon  going  home 
still  ran  high  in  the  brains  of  the  boys,  and  it  was 
concurred  in  that  they  would  be  home  by  the  1st 
of  July,  whether  the  rebs  came  or  not. 

A  few  days  after  the  return  of  the  51st  from  the 
South  Mills  or  Camden  affair  Col.  Hartranft  assumed 
command  of  the  regiment,  and  on  being  made  ac 
quainted  with  the  conduct  of  those  men  who  skulked 
back  to  the  vessel,  at  the  time  the  51st  was  preparing 
to  leave  the  landing  for  Camden,  he  had  them  arrested 
and  put  in  the  guard-house,  and  punished  them  by 
putting  on  the  ''overcoat"  (barrel),  which  they  wore 
for  several  hours  each  day  for  two  weeks;  when,  at 
the  expiration  of  that  time,  they  were  returned  to 
duty  on  the  promise  that  they  would  go  into  the 
next  fight  like  true  soldiers.  But  when  the  next 
fight  came  they  went  off,  forgetting,  or  rather  not 
caring  about  the  promise  they  had  made  to  escape 
further  punishment. 

On  the  23d  of  April  the  men  of  the  51st  received 
orders  for  a  march  several  miles  into  the  country, 
causing  the  men  to  grumble  a  great  deal,  as  they 
were  not  in  a  condition  to  undergo  any  such  fatigue. 
They  had  not  recovered  from  the  fatigue  of  the  19th, 
in  fact,  one-half  of  the  regiment  were  sick  from  their 


158      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

exertions  on  that  never-to-be-forgotten  march.  They 
supposed  that  it  was  to  be  a  tramp  of  no  importance 
whatever;  but  the  fact  of  the  case  was,  after  their 
return  to  camp  from  Camden,  they  became  so  sore 
and  stiff  in  their  limbs  that  it  was  with  many  endea 
vors  that  they  could  move  about  Sore  feet,  rheu 
matism,  &c.,  were  the  results  of  that  painful  march, 
and  Col.  Hartranft  wished  to  take  the  regiment  out 
on  a  few  hours'  march  to  give  them  a  little  exercise 
to  supple  their  limbs,  which  was  needed.  The  skin 
on  the  soles  of  their  feet  peeled  off  from  the  heels  to 
the  toes;  blisters  covering  spaces  the  size  of  a  silver 
dollar  were  worn  on  the  heels  and  other  parts  of  the 
men's  feet;  toenails  worn  down  to  the  flesh,  causing 
intense  pain  to  the  sufferers;  stone  bruises,  &c.,  were 
the  fruits  of  the  long  march.  It  must  be  borne  in 
mind  that  these  brave  men  had  not  become  inured 
to  the  fatigues  of  a  long  march,  from  the  fact  that 
all  their  travelling  had  been  done  so  far  by  steamers 
and  railroad;  but  after  separating  themselves  from 
the  naval  branch  of  the  expedition,  and  becoming 
land  forces  exclusively,  they  soon  took  up  the  hard 
ships  of  the  march,  and  proved  themselves  inferior 
to  none  in  that  vast  army. 

Thursday,  April  24th,  general  inspection;  and, 
notwithstanding  the  rough  usage  both  men  and 
accoutrements  had  so  lately  passed  through,  they 
made  a  splendid  appearance,  showing  good  discipline, 
drill,  and  cleanliness.  This  same  day  an  issue  of 
oilcloth  blankets  was  made  to  the  51st,  which  was 
the  first  issue  of  the  kind  ever  made  to  it,  arid  the 
teachings  of  several  storms  had  not  been  forgotten 
by  the  men,  for  all  or  nearly  all  received  one,  and 
valued  it  as  worth  more  than  anything  else  they 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      159 

could  possess,  being  of  immense  use  for  guard  pur 
poses  in  time  of  a  storm. 

On  the  25th  a  new  invoice  of  whiskey  had  been 
received  by  Quartermaster  Freedly,  to  be  issued  to 
the  regiment ;  and,  being  stored  away  in  the  large 
commissary  tent,  the  guards  that  were  posted  at  the 
commissary  after  nightfall  tapped  a  barrel  and  be 
came  greatly  intoxicated,  for  which  they  were  put 
under  guard,  and  wore  the  "o  ercoat"  for  about  ten 
days.  The  mode  adopted  by  the  guard  to  extract 
the  whiskey  was  certainly  an  ingenious  one.  They 
had  taken  the  barrels  of  their  guns  off  the  stocks, 
unscrewed  the  tubes,  and  inserted  the  breech  of  the 
barrels  in  the  bung-hole  of  the  cask,  and  applied 
their  mouths  to  the  muzzles,  and  sucked  themselves 
to  intoxication ;  but  by  some  legerdemain  they  suc 
ceeded  in  getting  off  with  little  or  no  punishment. 


CHAPTER   X. 

Expecting  an  attack — Raising  of  Flag-staff— Dirty  men — Re 
lease  of  cowards — Complimentary  orders — Discharges — 
Review — Weak  bridge — Home — Full  rations — Bathing  and 
fishing — Rain — Digging  ditches — Death — Mocking  birds — 
A  row — Changing  tents — Company  B's  bayonet  drill — 
Fort  Totten  and  gunboats— Orders  to  move  countermanded. 

ON  the  26th  of  April  the  whole  Coast  Division 
made  preparations  to  receive  the  defeated  and  re 
treating  rebels,  who  were  flying  ingloriously  from 
Yorktown,  Va.,  as  it  was  expected  that  they  would 
make  an  attempt  to  retake  Newbern.  Had  they  come, 
they  would  have  been  welcomed  to  hospitable  graves. 
Although  expecting  to  be  attacked  by  the  enemy 
every  minute,  Col.  Harfcranft  had  a  very  tall  flag- 


160     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

staff  raised  near  his  quarters,  with  the  stars  and 
stripes  floating  in  the  air  from  its  top,  bidding  defi 
ance  to  the  wind  and  storms  of  that  day,  as  well  as 
to  the  "Southern  chivalry."  Five  rebels  carne  in 
and  gave  themselves  up  as  prisoners  to  Col.  H.,  who 
disposed  of  them  in  his  usual  way,  by  putting  them 
under  guard,  and  sending  them  to  division  head 
quarters. 

The  27th  being  Sunday,  it  brought  its  usual  Sun 
day  inspection  by  companies,  which  began  to  be 
very  necessary  from  the  fact  that  Assistant  Surgeon 
Noble  ordered  not  a  few  to  put  themselves  to  soak, 
and  scrub  a  little  of  the  dirt  off;  one  man  in  particu 
lar,  who  had  not  participated  in  any  of  the  three 
fights — and,  what  is  more,  never  intended  to — very 
pleadingly  appealed  to  the  surgeon  to  grant  him  his 
discharge,  on  the  ground  of  delicate  health.  The 
surgeon  "couldn't  see  it,"  but  he  could  see  the  dirty 
condition  of  the  "  would-be  "  soldier,  and  prescribed 
two  ablutions  per  day  of  soap  and  water. 

Monday,  28th,  possessed  nothing  of  interest,  only 
the  disappointment  by  the  non-arrival  of  the  mails, 
and  the  daily  drills  of  companies  and  regiment.  The 
next  day  released  the  prisoners  at  the  guard-house 
from  further  punishment,  where  they  had  been  in 
carcerated  for  their  cowardice  at  Carnden  on  the  19th. 
Their  release  was  only  conditional,  on  their  promise 
of  going  into  the  next  battle  like  true  soldiers.  Did 
they  keep  sacred  that  promise?  We  shall  see, 
Another  issue  of  clothing  took  place,  and  the  regi 
ment  vied  with  the  best  of  them  in  soldierly  appear 
ance,  inasmuch  as  the  ''dirty  face  "party  had  complied 
with  the  colonel's  and  surgeon's  advice  and  orders. 

On   the   30th  was  regular    muster    for   pay   and 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      161 

general  inspection,  with  regimental  drill  and  dress 
parade.  Before  the  dismissal  of  this  dress  parade 
Adj.  Shorkley  read  to  the  regiment  a "specji.il  order 
from  Gen.  Burnside,  complimenting  the  officers  and 
men  of  the  51st  P.  V.  in  the  most  flattering  terms 
for  their  bravery  and  endurance  on  the  19th,  at 
Camden.  The  order  also  decreed  that  the  inscrip 
tion,  "Camden,  K  C.,  April  19th,  1862,"  should  be 
placed  on  the  regimental  battle-flag ;  this  was  the 
first  order  of  that  kind  issued  by  Gen.  Burnside  to 
any  of  his  "Coast  Division."  That  same  day  we 
learned  that  the  rebels'  loss  was  forty  killed  and 
seventy  wounded  at  the  battle  of  Carnden.  It  is 
necessary  here  to  state  that  the  same  complimentary 
orders  were  issued  to  the  89th  and  9th  (Hawkins' 
Zouaves)  N.  Y.,  6th  N.  H.,  and  21st  Mass. 

May  1st  brought  with  it  some  little  excitement. 
The  roaring  of  cannon  and  the  flight  of  rockets 
through  the  night,  caused  Colonel  Hartranft  to  be 
up  all  night  and  to  have  his  men  ready  to  "  fall  in  " 
at  a  moment's  notice,  for  it  was  predicted  that  the 
retreating  enemy  from  Yorktown  was  surely  com 
ing  ;  but  at  the  close  of  the  day  the  excitement  had 
lulled,  and  the  officers  and  men  went  early  to  rest. 
The  weather  was  very  warm  and  sultry,  with  a  good 
deal  of  rain,  producing  considerable  sickness  in 
the  51st,  which  caused  numerous  applications  for 
discharges  from  the  service  on  account  of  disability. 
Some  ten  or  a  dozen  were  lucky  enough  to  get 
them,  and  went  their  way  rejoicing  at  their  good 
fortune. 

On  the  2d,  a  grand  review  of  the  six  regiments 
that  had  participated  in  the  affair  at  Camden,  took 

place  on  the  parade  grounds  of  the  llth  Connect- 

S* 


162     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

icut  and  21st  Massachusetts,  by  Generals  Burnside 
and  Reno,  with  their  respective  staffs.  The  review 
was  held  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Trent  River,  near 
its  junction  with  Brice's  creek,  and  about  three 
miles  from  Camp  Franklin,  at  Newbern.  The  51st 
P.  Y.  marched  up  the  river  road  on  the  north  side 
of  the  Trent,  and  crossed  the  river  on  an  old,  dilap 
idated  drawbridge,  that  threatened  very  loudly  by 
its  creaking  and  swaying  to  and  fro,  to  precipitate 
the  entire  regiment  into  the  deep  and  sluggish 
stream  below.  The  danger  of  crossing  a  weak 
bridge  is  greatly  enhanced  by  a  regiment  marching 
in  cadence,  but  is  lessened  greatly  by  adopting  the 
rout  step.  This  the  51st  can  vouch  for,  as  it  has 
crossed  fully  as  many,  if  not  more  bridges  than  any 
other  regiment  in  the  United  States  service  during 
the  rebellion — but  I  am  digressing.  The  review 
took  place  at  one  o'clock  P.  M.,  and  the  51st  never 
made  a  finer  display  since  its  organization.  The 
arms  were  cleaned  to  perfection,  the  men  were  in 
fine  condition,  nearly  all  uniformed  in  new  clothing, 
and  under  the  very  best  of  discipline,  and  so  well 
were  the  Generals  pleased  with  the  marching  of  the 
six  regiments  that  they  only  "  passed  in  review,"  in 
"  quick  time,"  "  and  common  time,"  "  double-quick  " 
being  dispensed  with,  and  the  51st  returned  at  three 
p.  M.  to  its  camp  at  Newbern.  The  day  was  very 
clear,  and  the  rays  of  the  burning  sun  told  sadly 
on  the  appearance  of  the  men  on  their  return  to 
camp.  While  marching  from  the  drawbridge  to 
wards  carnp,  Col.  Hartranft  espied  Gen.  Burnsido 
riding  in  his  rear  at  full  gallop.  The  Col.  commanded 
''halt!"  with  the  view  of  "coming  to  a  front  and 
present  arms,"  to  the  illustrious  chieftain  as  he 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  163 

would  pass,  but  before  the  manoeuvre  could  be  exe 
cuted  Gen.  Burnside  had  reached  the  colors  of  the 
regiment,  and  easily  divining  what  Col.  Hartranft  was 
at,  raised  his  hat  and  saluting  the  Col.  thanked  him 
for  the  intended  honor,  and  remarked  that  he  "  took 
the  will  for  the  deed." 

The  next  day  after  the  review  was  Sunday,  and 
as  usual  there  was  regimental  inspection ;  but  the 
boys  did  not  care  for  it  as  they  were  in  good  spirits 
on  account  of  the  arrival  of  the  mails,  bringing 
a  rumor  with  it  that  New  Orleans  had  fallen  and 
that  all  the  North  Carolina  troops  (rebels)  had  sur 
rendered.  Nothing  troubled  them  now  but  how  soon 
they  were  to  go  home.  Home  was  the  absorbing 
topic  for  several  days,  as  it  was  confidently  believed 
that  the  rebellion  was  over,  and  some  officers  were 
so  sanguine  of  going  home  that  bets  of  §10  to 
§50  were  freely  offered,  but  no  one  was  found 
who  had  any  distrust  as  to  the  early  termination  of 
the  war. 

The  regiment  was  now  enjoying  full  rations  arid 
of  the  very  best  quality.  Fresh  beef  every  other 
day  and  prime  mess  pork  the  intervening  days, 
with  alternate  clays  of  "hard  tack"  and  baker's 
bread,  with  beans,  rice,  coffee,  sugar,  tea,  vinegar, 
molasses,  salt,  pepper,  &c. 

The  men  had  every  opportunity  to  obtain  any 
little  luxury  that  they  needed,  for  the  colored  persons 
inhabiting  Newbern  visited  the  camp  every  day 
with  well  filled  baskets  of  pies  and  cakes  of  endless 
varieties,  which  they  sold  at  reasonable  prices  and 
found  a  very  ready  market.  The  men  found  the 
colored  women  very  ready  and  willing  to  do  their 
washing,  at  the  extremely  low  price  of  only  sixty 


164     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY -FIEST   KEGIMENT 

cents  per  dozen.  While  the  regiment  was  laying 
at  this  camp  the  men  had  frequent  opportunities  for 
recreation ;  the  river  being  only  a  few  yards  off 
every  evening  large  squads  would  go  in  to  bathe, 
while  others  enjoyed  themselves  in  fishing  or  per 
ambulating  the  streets  of  the  city. 

Leave  of  absence  to  a  limited  few  were  being 
granted  to  the  officers  connected  with  the  Coast  Di 
vision,  and  among  the  fortunate  ones  was  2d  Lieut. 
Geo.  Schall  of  Co.  I.  The  men  who  received  their 
discharges  departed  along  with  Lieut.  Schall  on  the 
6th  of  May  for  their  Northern  homes  and  with  no 
very  good  opinion  of  Uncle  Sam.  There  was  $26 
due  them  on  the  1st  of  May,  and  in  getting  their 
pay  the  cost  of  their  clothing,  over  and  above  the 
monthly  allowance,  (they  having  overdrawn)  was 
deducted  from  their  pay,  which  left  some  with  but 
a  trifling  amount  to  receive,  for  which  the  govern 
ment  was  falsely  berated.  The  discharged  men 
thinking  that  the  government  donated  any  amount 
of  clothing  that  they  saw  fit  to  draw,  in  which,  to 
their  surprise,  they  were  mistaken. 

On  the  night  of  the  5th  the  rain  poured  down  in 
cessantly  until  daylight,  completely  flooding  the 
camp,  filling  tents  from  two  to  ten  inches  deep  with 
water,  driving  the  inmates  out  of  their  bunks  to 
seek  shelter  wherever  they  could  find  it.  The  next 
morning  Col.  Hartranft  had  about  one  hundred  men 
detailed  for  the  purpose  of  digging  channels  the 
entire  length  and  breadth  of  the  carnp,  to  drain  it 
in  case  of  another  flood ;  the  task  lasted  several 
days,  and  no  doubt  would  have  proven  a  success 
had  the  51st  lain  long  enough  at  Camp  Franklin  to 
have  seen  it  demonstrated.  Death  was  at  work 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEES.  165 

that  stormy  night.  William  Rambo,  Co.  I,  died  at 
1  A.  M.,  6th  of  May,  1862,  from  camp  fever,  brought 
on  by  exposure  and  fatigue  during  the  taking  of 
Newbern.  His  body  was  embalmed  in  a  primitive 
way,  in  a  coffin  sealed  air-tight  with  rosin,  and  sent 
by  express  to  his  relatives  in  Kadnor,  Delaware 
county,  Penna.  The  art  of  embalming  at  that  time 
was  not  such  as  the  latter  part  of  the  war  witnessed. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  rebellion  it  was  no  easy 
task  to  get  a  corpse  sent  home,  «but  at  a  later  day  an 
order  to  Drs.  Brown  and  Alexander,  the  embalmists, 
was  all  that  was  necessary  to  insure  the  safe  and 
speedy  transit  of  a  corpse.  On  the  8th  of  May  a 
mail  came  in  and  brought  the  glad  tidings  of  the 
lownfall  of  Yorktown,  and  of  the  crippling  of  the 
Merrimac  by  the  Monitor,  and  of  the  great  battle 
fought  at  Corinth,  filling  the  whole  of  the  Coast  Di 
vision  with  such  enthusiasm  as  only  soldiers  who 
are  anxious  to  get  home  could  feel. 

Mocking  birds  that  hovered  around  the  camp 
seemed  to  be  like  affected,  for  they  would  perch 
themselves  among  the  branches  of  a  fig  tree  that 
stood  in  a  private  yard  at  one  corner  of  the  camp 
arid  warble  their  richest  melodies  until  one  would 
think  they  would  split  their  little  throats,  each  one 
seeming  to  try  to  outvie  the  other  in  making  the  most 
music.  I  have  no  doubt  the  veterans  of  the  51st  still 
remember  those  precious  songsters  who  afforded 
i.hern  such  delicious  music  while  patrolling  their 
guard-beats  around  the  camp. 

At  9  A.  M.,  on  the  10th  of  May,  the  51st  struck  tents 
for  police  purposes,  the  camp  was  thoroughly  policed 
and  the  tents  were  pitched  again  at  4.  p.  M.  Dur 
ing  the  policing  a  few  of  the  men  of  Co.  D  had  been 


166     HISTOEY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

into  the  city  and  got  a  few  too  many  drinks  of 
whiskey,  so  that  by  the  time  they  arrived  in  camp 
they  were  ripe  for  a  muss,  but  not  finding  any  of 
the  sober  ones  inclined  to  quarrel  they  kicked  up  a 
fight  amongst  themselves  which  threatened  to  be 
come  a  free  fight,  but  after  a  few  heads  were  cut 
some  of  the  officers  interfered  and  put  a  stop  to  the 
riotous  proceedings.  After  the  camp  was  policed 
the  health  of  the  regiment  began  to  improve,  and 
every  few  days  it  was  receiving  fresh  acquisitions 
of  convalescents  from  the  various  hospitals.  Chap 
lain  Mallory  having  had  a  leave  of  absence  for  a 
short  time  to  visit  his  home  in  Norristown,  returned 
to  his  duties  on  the  8th,  and  on  the  llth  the  regi 
ment  was  assembled  on  the  color  line  and  marched 
into  the  city  to  church,  where  the  chaplain  preached 
one  of  his  best  sermons  as  usual.  Although  the 
camp  had  been  thoroughly  policed  on  the  10th,  the 
work  as  a  military  necessity  had  to  be  done  over  on 
the  12th,  for  the  purpose  of  pitching  the  Sibley 
tents  in  place  of  the  wedge  or  common  tents.  No 
drills  occurred  on  this  day  on  account  of  exchanging 
tents,  also  there  was  no  drilling  the  next  day,  for 
just  as  the  companies  got  on  the  drill-ground  the 
3d  New  York  (Morrison's)  Battery  came  upon  the 
ground  with  their  guns  for  target  practice.  The 
next  day  the  51st  P.  V.  and  the  51st  New  York  had 
brigade  drill,  which  the  two  regiments  continued  to 
do  for  several  days.  The  principal  drilling  of  the 
companies  was  the  skirmish  drill.  Co.  B,  Capt. 
Bell,  was  continually  drilling  the  bayonet  exercise, 
and  it  cannot  be  gainsaid  that  no  set  of  men  ever 
proved  themselves  more  proficient  in  the  manual 
than  Co.  B  did  in  the  bayonet  manual ;  such  pre- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  167 

cision  seemed  incredible,  for  every  movement  was 
as  perfect  as  it  was  possible  to  be.  The  exercise  is 
one  of  the  most  graceful  in  the  whole  manual,  if  cor 
rectly  taught,  and  one  of  the  most  awkward  drills 
that  can  be  undertaken  if  not  correctly  understood 
by  the  drill- master.  But  in  this  Co.  B  had  for  its 
instructor  one  who  not  only  understood  his  business, 
but  had  that  priceless  boon,  patience,  and  right 
heartily  did  Co.  B  appreciate  their  now  lamented 
captain's  efforts  by  putting  their  whole  souls  into 
the  work,  for  which,  as  a  company,  they  have  every 
reason  to  be  proud  of  their  drilling  and  of  their 
friend  and  commander,  Capt.  Ferd.  Bell.  One  or 
two  other  companies  began  the  bayonet  exercise, 
but  they  soon  got  disgusted  with  it  and  themselves 
together,  for  it  required  more  patience  than  most 
officers  and  men  possessed,  so  they  abandoned  the 
work  that  they  had  begun  and  left  Capt.  Bell  and 
his  company  to  enjoy  their  well-earned  laurels. 

On  Tuesday,  May  13th,  the  new  fort  in  the  rear 
of  Newbern,  built  to  co-operate  \vith  the  infantry  and 
gunboats  for  the  purpose  of  holding  the  city  against 
any  combined  movement  of  the  enemy  to  retake  it, 
was  finished  and  named  "  Fort  Totten."  The  gun 
boats  on  both  rivers  (Trent  and  Neuse)  opened  their 
guns  and  fired  towards  the  fort  and  its  front  to  see 
if  the  fort,  with  the  aid  of  the  gunboats,  could  cover 
the  three  miles  of  land  in  front  of  the  fort,  which 
was  the  only  feasible  way  for  the  rebels  to  make  an 
attack  on  the  ci'y.  The  experiment  was  eminently 
successful.  It  may  be  said  that  the  doings  of  the 
fort  and  gunboats  have  nothing  to  do  with  this 
history — granted,  but  as  the  fort  was  only  a  few 
yards  from  Camp  Franklin  the  artillerists  and  the 


168      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

5 1st  were  on  very  intimate  terms,  spending  many 
happy  hours  in  each  other's  society. 

On  Thursday,  May  15th,  an  order  was  received 
by  the  colonel  to  have  his  regiment  prepared  to 
move  at  a  moment's  notice,  with  sixty  rounds  of 
cartridges  and  three  days'  cooked  rations.  Every 
thing  was  ready  to  move  by  2  P.  M.,  but  after  being 
under  arms  for  two  hours  the  order  was  counter 
manded.  A  regiment  of  U.  S.  cavalry  and  a  bat 
tery  of  regulars  that  was  in  the  Coast  Division,  had 
been  out  on  picket  for  several  days  before  the  51st 
P.  V.  received  the  orders,  and  they  reported  a  large 
body  of  the  enemy  in  their  vicinity;  through  that 
report  the  51st  P.  Y.  was  to  reinforce  them  and  to 
make  an  attack  on  the  enemy  to  capture  or  disperse 
them  ;  but  just  as  the  51st  P.  V.  was  ready  to  move 
the  cavalry  and  artillery  came  in,  bringing  quite  a 
large  number  of  prisoners  with  them,  after  a  severe 
fight  of  four  hours  duration.  They  reported  that  if 
they  had  had  a  regiment  of  infantry  along  with 
them  they  could  have  captured  the  whole  force.  The 
countermanding  of  the  order  was  received  with  de 
light  by  the  men,  as  it  had  been  raining  pretty  hard 
all  day,  and  after  the  regiment  was  ready  to  march 
the  rain  came  down  in  torrents  and  continued  to  do 
so  for  several  hours,  hence  the  men's  delight  in  not 
having  to  march  that  day. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  169 


C  II A  P  T  E  R    XT. 

Rumors — Prospect  of  garrisoning  Baltimore — Changing  stripes 
—  Carrying  the  log — Burnside  hunting  up  the  cooks — Off  to 
Brice's  creek — Camp  Reno — Col.  Hartranf't's  "staff" — The 
"staff"  salutes  the  Colonel— Review  by  Governor  Stanley — 
Amusements  at  Camp  Reno— Green  snakes — Fruits — First 
Payment  in  Greenbacks— Pioneers  burning  bridges— General 
Speight's  tomb. 

AFTER  this  event  tLe  regiment  calmly  settled  down 
once  more  to  drills,  guard,  policing,  and  fatigue  duties. 
It  was  at  this  time  that  Col.  [Jartranft  commenced 
to  drill  the  regiment  by  the  sound  of  the  bugle, 
which  was  not  altogether  successful,  as  the  whole 
regiment  was  opposed  to  it ;  but  very  few  men 
would  take  interest  enough  in  it  to  learn  the  different 
notes  of  the  bugle.  Some  wag  started  a  rumor  that 
the  51st  P.  Y.  and  the  51st  N.  Y.  were  to  go  to 
Baltimore  to  do  garrison  duty  at  Fort  Federal  Hill, 
as  the  war  was  so  near  over  that  a  portion  of  the 
North  Carolina  forces  could  easily  be  spared,  and 
the  rumor  found  very  ready  and  willing  believers. 
Nothing  was  talked  of  through  the  day  but  Balti 
more.  Baltimore  was  the  dream  at  night ;  it  was 
the  toast  at  all  social  gatherings  of  the  two  regiments ; 
in  fact,  the  two  regiments  breathed  and  lived  Balti 
more.  But  was  it  to  be  wondered  at? — every  cir 
cumstance  warranted  it;  for  instance,  a  Convention 
of  North  Carolinians  was  held  on  the  22d  of  May 
to  decide  whether  they  were  to  remain  in  the  Union 
or  not,  and  it  was  decided  by  a  vote  of  52  yeas  to 
82  nays ;  but  Grov.  Clark,  of  that  State,  had  not 
recognized  the  Convention,  and  it  was  not  known 
what  hi?  views  were.  Then,  again,  Northern  papers 


170      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY  FIRST    REGIMENT 

stated  that  seven  North  Carolina  (rebel)  regiments 
had  disbanded  in  Virginia,  and  returned  home. 
Three  counties  had  actually  thrown  off  their  seces 
sion  allegiance,  and  acknowledged  the  authority  of 
the  United  States  ;  and,  again,  the  men  took  it  for 
granted  that  all  officers  were  posted  up  in  the  status 
of  affairs,  but  dare  not  reveal  all  they  knew ;  conse 
quently,  a  member  of  Co.  B,  who  had  been  a  long 
time  sick,  applied  to  Col.  Hartranft  for  a  furlough, 
but  was  told  by  the  colonel  that  he  had  better  put  it 
off  for  a  short  time,  as  we  would  all  have  furloughs 
before  six  weeks;  signifying  that  the  regiment 
would  be  discharged  by  that  time.  That  hint  was 
was  sufficient;  "Baltimore"  got  to  a  discount,  and 
Easton,  Lewisburg,  and  Norristown  rose  above  par! 
Alas !  for  human  wishes ! 

Heretofore  the  non-commissioned  officers  wore 
their  insignia  of  office  in  green  braid;  but,  on  the 
24th  of  May,  an  order  was  read  on  dress  parade, 
prohibiting  "  green,"  and  ordering  all  non-coms,  to 
conform  to  the  regulation  stripes  of  blue.  The 
order  caused  considerable  grumbling,  but  the  blue 
had  to  go  on.  At  the  latter  end  of  this  month, 
Col.  Hartranft  changed  his  mode  of  punishment 
from  wearing  the  barrel  to  "  carrying  the  log  on  the 
ring,"  and  it  was  no  uncommon  thing  to  see  two  or 
three  refractory  soldiers  daily  on  the  ring,  "doing 
penance  "  for  their  sins. 

On  the  26th  of  May,  Gen.  Burnside  rode  into 
camp,  unattended  even  by  an  orderly,  for  the  ex 
press  purpose  of  satisfying  himself  as  to  the  quantity 
and  quality  of  the  rations  the  men  were  getting. 
He  did  not  go  to  the  officers  first  for  his  information, 
but  direct  to  the  men,  and  rode  among  the  cooks, 
and  viewed  the  camp- kettles,  mess-pans,  and  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      171 

food,  and  listened  attentively  to  all  the  men  had  to 
say  on  the  subject.  He  halted  at  Co.  D's  cook-tent, 
where  coffee  was  in  the  act  of  being  taken  off  the 
fire.  The  General,  casting  a  roguish  eye  at  the 
cook,  asked  him,  "What  do  you  call  that?"  The 
cook  replied,  "  Coffee,  General."  "  Let  me  taste  it," 
said  the  old  hero.  A  tin-cup  half  full  was  handed 
to  him,  and  he  tasted  it,  with  the  remark,  "  And  you 
call  that  coffee,  do  you?"  "Yes,  sir,"  replied  the 
cook.  "Now,"  says  the  General,  "tell  me  whose 
fault  is  it  that  that  coffee  is  so  weak  ?  Is  it  your 
Quartermaster's  ?  or  do  the  men  prefer  it  that  way  ?" 
li  Oh,  no,  sir ;  it's  not  the  Quartermaster's  fault ;  he 
issues  all  that  we  are  entitled  to ;  but  the  men  want 
it  three  times  a  day,  and  they  tell  me  to  make  it  a 
leetle  weak  so  they  can  have  it  that  often,"  replied 
the  cook.  After  visiting  the  men,  he  then  went  to 
Col.  Hartranft's  quarters,  to  either  praise  or  con 
demn  what  he  had  discovered.  On  Wednesday,  the 
28th  of  May,  the  51st  P.  Y.  received  orders  to  pre 
pare  to  move  camp  the  next  day ;  consequently  the 
following  morning,  (the  29tb,)  the  regiment  struck 
tents,  and  moved  up  to  the  confluence  of  Brice's 
creek  and  the  Trent  river,  about  three  miles  from 
Newbern.  By  night  of  the  same  day  all  were  quietly 
domiciled  in  their  new  quarters,  although  the  day 
had  been  one  of  excitement  in  Co.  A  and  Co.  D,  for 
a  terrible  fight  took  place  in  both  companies,  each 
independent  of  the  other.  Although  Co.  A's  was  a 
desperate  one,  it  was  not  to  be  compared  to  Co.  D's ; 
for  in  it  bayonets  were  used  as  clubs  in  knocking 
men  down,  &c.  There  were  no  officers  in  camp  at 
the  time,  as  they  had  all  to  go  early  in  the  morning 
up  to  the  new  camp,  to  attend  to  laying  out  their 
camp  streets,  &c. ;  consequently  the  combatants  had 


172     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

no  one  to  interfere  with  them  until  the  fighting  was 
nearly  over,  when  one  of  Burnside's- staff  officers, 
accidentally  riding  by,  came  into  camp,  anxd  quelled 
the  disturbance.  This  new  camp  was  christened 
"Camp  Reno,"  in  honor  of  Gen.  Jesse  L.  Reno,  who 
was  in  command  of  a  division  of  Burnside's  expe 
dition.  His  name  was  an  honor  to  the  camp,  as  few, 
generals,  if  any,  were  his  superiors  in  a  military  point 
of  view,  and  as  a  gentleman,  none  were.  The  camp  that 
bore  that  cherished  name  was  little  less  than  a  fairy 
scene.  The  ground  surface  was  about  ten  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  two  waters,  Brice's  creek  and  Trent 
river.  The  creek  courses  within  150  yards  of  the 
Trent  river,  where  the  entrance  of  the  camp  was, 
and  then  turning  abruptly  off,  it  formed  a  horseshoe 
bend  to  the  fairy-like  pine  grove  wherein  the  51st  P. 
V.  was  encamped.  Water  for  drinking  purposes 
had  to  be  obtained  by  digging  wells,  of  which  Co.  A 
dug  one  and  Co.  K  dug  another.  The  duties  at  this 
camp  were  very  light,  being  more  of  a  picketing 
nature  than  otherwise.  There  was  the  usual  daily 
routine  of  drilling  and  camp  guard,  with  one  post  of 
pickets  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  creek,  about 
three-fourths  of  a  mile  from  camp. 

The  policing  was  not  done  by  detail,  it  was  per 
formed  by  "Old  Johnny's  staff','1  as  it  was  facetiously 
styled.  This  "staff"  of  "Old  Johnny's"  was  com 
posed  of  privates  who  had  transgressed  good  disci 
pline  as  soldiers,  and  instead  of  giving  them  a  log 
to  carry  on  the  ring,  or  putting  them  in  the  guard 
house,  (where  instead  of  a  punishment  it  often  was 
a  source  of  recreation,  for  with  a  "deck  of  cards" 
they  would  while  away  their  incarceration  like 
" lords"  and  laugh  at  the  "poor  devils"  who,  by 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      173 

being  good  soldiers,  were  forced  to  do  the  duty  of 
the  prisoners,  having  to  go  out  on  guard  in  a  heavy 
rain.)  they  were  formed  into  a  fatigue  party  and 
compelled  to  labor  at  something  useful,  such  as  cut 
ting  roads  through  the  pine  forests,  preparing  drill- 
ground,  policing  camp,  or  any  thing  else  that  "old 
Johnny"  thought  should  be  done.  The  veterans 
who  were  on  i  is  "  staff"  at  that  time  can  inform  any 
of  our  farmers  the  quickest  method  of  "  grubbing  " 
up  stumps,  for  they  had  ample  experience  in  that 
line.  Sometimes  this  "staff"  would  number  thirty 
men,  and  at  other  times  not  more  than  a  dozen,  but 
it  was  generally  kept  up  to  a  goodly  number,  for 
as  soon  as  any  of  their  time  expired  there  were 
other  candidates  ready  to  fill  their  places,  and  thus 
that  never-to-be-forgotten  "  staff)"  was  kept  re 
cruited.  A  little  incident  connected  with  it  will 
not  be  out  of  place  to  mention  here.  The  regiment 
when  going  out  for  regimental-drill  had  to  march 
nearly  half  a  mile  through  a  pine  woods  to  a  large 
cotton  field  which  was  the  drill-ground.  As  Col. 
Hartranft  and  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  were  riding  at  the 
right  of  the  regiment  the  "staff)"  who  were  cutting 
a  road  through  the  woods,  were  brought  to  a  '"front" 
on  the  roadside  under  the  command  of  Joseph  Young, 
and  as  the  colonel  and  the  regiment  reached  the  left 
of  the  "staff's"  line  the  indomitable  "Joe"  ordered 
a  "present  arms"  to  the  passing  officers  and  men 
with  such  grace  and  precision,  although  their  arms 
were  only  axes,  and  without  the  least  symptom  of  a 
smile  on  the  countenance  of  any  of  the  "  t-taff"  that  it 
bothered  the  colonel  and  lieutenant  colonel  to  tell 
which  was  intended — an  honor  or  an  insult.  How 
ever,  Col.  11.  did  not  recognize  it  as  an  honor  for  he 


174     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

did  not  "  shoulder  arms"  in  passing  the  "  staff,"  but 
gave  them  one  of  his  most  piercing  looks  amounting 
to  as  much  as  to  say  "I'll  investigate  this,"  but 
nothing  was  ever  done  in  the  matter.  The  incident 
caused  many  a  hearty  laugh  at  the  colonel's  expense, 
while  he  has  laughed  as  heartily  as  any. 

On  the  last  day  of  May  a  grand  review  of  the  en 
tire  Coast  Division  was  had  in  honor  of  the  provisional 
governor  of  North  Carolina,  Gov.  Stanly.  The 
weather  was  very  hot,  but  the  troops  bore  it  well ;  the 
51st  P.  V.  had  the  worst  of  it,  as  it  had  farther  to  march 
than  any  other  regiment,  for  the  review  was  held  in 
the  city  of  Newbern,  and  the  regiment  had  to  march 
there  in  the  morning  and  back  again  to  camp,  as 
the  review  was  postponed  until  afternoon.  The 
regiment  looked  well  after  its  arrival  at  Newbern 
in  the  morning,  but  after  making  the  march  the 
second  time  it  was  only  among  the  average  in  ap 
pearance;  the  extreme  heat  causing  the  men  to 
perspire  very  freely,  and  the  dust  settling  on  their 
damp  clothing  could  not  be  brushed  off,  but  the 
marching  and  their  bright  arms  and  equipments 
were  equal  to  the  best.  The  regiment  got  back  to 
its  new  camp  at  dusk,  pretty  well  worn  out  with 
heat  and  fatigue,  being  under  arms  from  6  o'clock 
in  the  morning  until  dark.  All  such  circumstances 
as  reviews  and  parades  are  ten -fold  more  irksome 
than  to  be  on  the  march  for  thrice  the  length  of 
t^rne. 

The  amusements  of  the  men  while  in  camp  were 
varied  ;  the  camp  being  nearly  surrounded  by  water, 
swimming  was  the  principal  source,  but  fishing  was 
also  indulged  in  with  poor  success.  Poppy  Widger 
of  Co.  A,  had  a  tent  at  the  water's  edge  and  had 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      175 

more  success  in  fishing  than  all  the  regiment  put 
together.  Corpl.  Parker  with  two  others  obtained 
a  boat  and  went  up  the  creek  about  half  a  mile  from 
camp  to  fish.  Seeing  what  they  supposed  was  the 
trunk  of  a  tree  lying  in  the  middle  of  the  stream, 
they  concluded  to  row  up  to  it  and  make  the  boat 
secure  to  the  log ;  the  corporal  taking  the  small 
chain  in  his  hand  and  putting  one  foot  on  the  log  to 
feel  its  security,  when  lo !  the  log  dive<l  under  the 
water,  nearly  precipitating  the  corporal  headlong 
into  the  stream ;  the  log  proving  to  be  an  alligator 
the  party  concluded  to  fish  none  that  day,  and  tak 
ing  the  oars  they  rowed  back  to  camp  at  a  "  double 
quick." 

The  first  few  days  in  the  new  camp  the  men 
killed  a  very  large  number  of  green  snakes  which 
they  found  suspended  on  the  small  trees  that  grew 
along  the  water's  edge,  having  the  appearance  of  a 
yard  of  green  ribbon  hanging  there.  Blackberrying 
was  another  pleasure  the  men  enjoyed;  crossing  the 
creek  to  the  opposite  side  it  was  only  a  few  minutes 
work  to  pick  a  mess-panful  of  the  most  luscious 
berries  that  ever  grew.  Grapes,  plums,  mountain 
cherries,  mulberries,  &c.,  were  to  be  found  in  great 
abundance  and  in  full  perfection.  The  men  lived 
at  the  "top  of  the  pile"  while  in  this  camp;  milk, 
butter,  eggs,  and  poultry  had  to  suffer  at  their 
hands.  It  must  not  be  supposed  that  they  stole  them, 
all  was  honestly  paid  for,  as  the  paymaster  was  more, 
prompt  in  visiting  them  at  that  time  than  he  -was 
six  months  after. 

The  regiment  was  again  paid  on  the  2d  day  of 
June,  but  this  time  not  in  gold.  Greenbacks  was 
the  currency.  The  men  sent  large  sums  of  money 


176     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

to  their  homes  via  Adams  Express.  Quite  a  number 
lost  their  pocketbooks;  among  the  unfortunate  ones 
was  Benj.  Rowland,  a  member  of  the  band,  who  lost 
058. 

On  the  5th  June,  was  held  the  first  dress-parade 
of  Camp  Reno,  at  which  parade  three  sergeants 
and  four  corporals  were  reduced  to  the  ranks;  the 
reductions  were  in  Cos.  B  and  C. 

On  the  9th,  a  full  brigade  drill  occupied  nearly 
the  whole  day,  causing  both  officers  and  men  to 
grumble  at  the  excess  of  the  dose. 

On  the  9th  of  June,  the  pioneers  belonging  to  the 
51st  P.  Y.  were  detailed  to  proceed  some  fourteen 
miles  into  the  interior  of  the  State  for  the  purpose 
of  burning  and  destroying  bridges,  felling  trees 
across  roads,  and  in  other  ways  impeding  the  march 
of  the  enemy,  who  were  reported  to  be  on  their  way 
to  retake  Newbern.  The  pioneers  accomplished 
their  duty  and  returned  to  Camp  Reno,  after  an 
absence  of  three  days. 

A  hospital,  which  wns  under  the  charge  of  Col. 
Hartranfr,  had  been  established  close  to  Camp  Reno, 
in  the  mansion  belonging  to  a  family  by  the  name 
of  Brount,  descendants  of  Gen.  Speight  of  Revolu 
tionary  fame.  It  required  a  corporal  and  six  men 
daily  detailed  to  guard  it,  but  with  all  the  vigilance 
of  this  special  guard  it  was  impossible  to  prevent 
occasional  depredations  by  visitors  from  other  camps, 
who  were  anxious  to  carry  off  some  memento  from 
the  premises  of  the  deceased  Revolutionary  General. 
The  tomb  in  which  Gen.  Speight's  remains  were 
reposing  was  ruthlessly  destroyed  by  curiosity 
seekers.  The  handsome  marble  slab  that  covered 
the  coffin,  and  contained  the  birth,  death  and  mili- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      177 

tary  services  of  the  deceased,  was  broken  into  frag 
ments  and  carried  offj  leaving  the  coffin  exposed  to 
full  view.  After  the  51st  took  the  property  under 
its  charge  such  sacrilege  was  pretty  well  prevented, 
but  coming  to  the  rescue  at  the  eleventh  hour  there 
was  only  a  little  left  that  needed  protection. 

All  the  large  plantations  throughout  the  South 
have  vaults  or  graveyards  close  to  the  mansion  for 
the  interment  of  the  deceased  members  of  the  resi 
dent  families.  About  two  miles  from  camp,  on  the 
opposite  side  of  Bribe's  creek,  was  a  stately  planta 
tion  of  five  thousand  acres  belonging  to  a  "  Col.  Hill," 
who  was  at  that  time  an  officer  in  the  rebel  army. 
A  vault  on  this  place,  close  to  the  dwelling-house, 
and  within  fifty  yards  of  the  banks  of  the  Trent 
river,  contained  a  large  number  of  coffins  with  the 
remains  of  members  of  the  family  for  several  gen 
erations  back,  but  a  visit  to  the  place  by  members 
of  a  Connecticut  and  a  New  York  regiment,  soon 
reduced  the  structure  to  a  shapeless  collection  of 
ruins,  having 'bursted  the  cerements  of  the  departed 
and  piled  the  bones  in  a  confused  mass.  As  the 
writer  of  this*  frequently  visited  the  above-men 
tioned  place  for  the  purpose  of  plucking  the  luscious 
fruit  that  grew  close  to  the  house,  he  can  honestly 
say  that  not  one  act  of  lawless  depredation  was  ever 
committed  by  any  of  the  men  of  the  51st  P.  V. 
there,  or  at  any  of  the  many  vaults  and  tombs  in 
that  vicinity. 

All  the  property  in  this  region  of  country  was 
abandoned  by  the  legitimate  owners,  and  the  places 
left  to  the  ruthless  mercy  of  the  Yankee  arrny ;  but 
in  all  the  destruction  committed  by  men  of  the  51st 
P.  V.,  vaults,  tombs,  graves,  sarcophagi,  etc.,  were 


178     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

held  with  too  much  reverence  by  them  to  either 
violate  the  sanctity  of  the  spot  or  allow  others  to 
do  so. 

On  the  12th  of  June,  Provisional  Governor  Stan 
ley  of  North  Carolina,  paid  Carnp  Keno  a  visit. 
The  Governor  was  delighted  with  it,  and  was  loud 
in  his  praise  of  the  beauty  and  cleanliness  of  the 
camp,  and  the  military  discipline  of  the  regiment. 

About  the  12th,  Colonel  Hartranft  detailed  his 
"  staff'"  to  construct  a  ferry  across  Brice's  creek 
and  to  cut  a  road  through  the  forest  on  the  opposite 
side,  to  be  used  for  various  purposes,  and  on  the  14th 
it  was  finished.  The  ferry  was  put  up  by  extending 
a  heavy  cable  across  the  creek,  making  the  ends  fast 
on  either  shore,  and  completed  with  a  large  flat- 
boat  that  had  been  captured,  capable  of  carrying 
from  two  hundred  and  fifty  to  three  hundred  men 
across  at  one  trip  ;  but  in  making  preparations  for 
the  first  trip,  a  couple  of  "  contrabands  "  in  a  canoe, 
got  capsized  headlong  into  the  sluggish  stream,  but 
were  soon  rescued  without  any  further  damage  than 
a  thorough  ducking. 

On  Tuesday,  June  17th,  the  regiment  made  its 
first  trip  across ;  after  disembarking  it  marched 
about  two  miles  to  a  large  cotton  field  for  drill  and 
target  firing,  where  some  excellent  shots  were  made. 
After  the  exercises  of  the  trip  were  over,  the  regi 
ment  returned  to  camp  just  in  time  to  welcome  Gen. 
Burnside,  who  visited  the  regiment  officially. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  179 


CHAPTEE    XII. 

Rhode  Island  presents  Gen.  Burnside  with  a  sword — White 
gloves — Prizes  in  Co.  A — Resignation  of  Capt.  Pechin — 
Promotions  in  Co.  I — Marching  orders — A  happy  night — 
"  Pill  business  " — Off  to  reinforce  McClellan — Return  to  camp 
Reno — Off  again  to  McClellan — On  the  Recruit — Arrival  at 
Newport  News,  Va. — Camp  Lincoln — Base-ball — Quarter 
rations — Post  of  Honor. 

ON  Wednesday,  June  18th,  preparations  were 
made  to  attend  a  grand  review,  including  a  sword 
presentation  to  General  Burnside,  from  the  people 
of  Rhode  Island,  for  his  valuable  services ;  but  as 
the  presentation  committee  was  not  quite  ready,  the 
event  was  postponed  until  the  next  day.  The  next 
day  dawned  scorching  hot,  and  as  the  troops  began 
to  assemble  on  the  review  ground,  a  black  cloud 
obscured  the  sun  and  began  pouring  down  the 
aquatic  fluid  in  such  torrents  that  the  review  was 
necessarily  postponed  until  the  day  after. 

A  request  was  issued  by  Col.  H.  for  the  men  to 
purchase  white  gloves  for  the  occasion,  but  it  was 
met  with  a  silent  and  flat  refusal,  silent  only  in  the 
presence  of  officers,  but  among  themselves  it  was 
decided  to  refuse  compliance,  and  the  next  day  the 
review  did  come  off,  but  white  gloves  were  scarce 
in  the  51st  P.  V.  This  review  and  sword  presenta 
tion  was  one  of  the  most  magnificent  affairs  that  was 
ever  witnessed,  as  everything  passed  off. with  the 
strictest  discipline  and  formality. 

On  June  21st,  Co.  Gr,  Captain  Blair,  was  detailed 
to  go  out  a  considerable  distance  on  picket  and  did 
not  return  until  the  30th. 


180     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

On  the  22d,  the  regular  Sunday  company  inspec 
tion  took  place.  This  inspection  was  attended  with 
manifest  interest  on  account  of  Captain  William  J. 
Bolton  offering  three  prizes  to  Co.  A,  respectively 
$5,  $2.50  and  $1,  for  the  cleanest  arms  and 
accoutrements  and  the  most  soldierly  appearance  of 
their  possessors ;  but  so  well  did  the  members  of 
Co.  A  contend  for  the  first  prize,  that  the  three 
company  officers  who  acted  as  judges  were  puzzled 
to  award  the  prizes  at  first,  but  they  decided  that 
private  Theodore  H.  Gilbert  was  entitled  to  the  third 
prize  of$l.  The  decision  for  the  first  and  second 
prizes  was  then  referred  to  Col.  Hartranft,  who  after 
inspecting  the  men,  guns,  etc.,  decided  private  James 
M.  Bolton  entitled  to  the  first  prize,  and  private 
Daniel  Stout  to  the  second  prize.  So  close  in  clean 
liness  and  appearance  were  these  two  men  that  the 
winner  of  the  first  prize  only  won  it  by  a  button 
being  sewed  upside  down  on  his  opponent's  blouse, 
which  had  been  overlooked  by  his  competitor  when 
sewing  it  on.  It  was  at  best  a  difficult  award  to 
make,  for  there  were  so  many  to  decide  upon  and 
all  had  done  their  best  to  win  the  first  prize  that  it 
must  be  said,  without  fear  of  contradiction,  that  no 
company  in  the  Union  army  ever  contained  cleaner 
guns,  accoutrements,  clothing  and  men.  To  Capt. 
William  J.  Bolton  is  due  the  credit  of  inaugurating 
a  new  impulse  in  the  regiment  for  possessing  the 
cleanest  guns,  accoutrements,  etc.,  for  from  that  day 
the  competition  ran  high  in  all  the  other  companies 
of  the  regiment  among  the  men,  and  the  rivalry 
was  kept  up  to  the  final  discharge  of  the  51st  P.  V. 

On  the  23d,  Capt.  George  E.  Pechin,  of  Co.  I, 
resigned  his  commission  on  account  of  ill  health, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      181 

having  nearly  lost  his  speech  from  disease  con 
tracted  in  wading  the  swamp  at  the  taking  of  Roan- 
oke  Island  on  the  7th  and  8th  of  the  previous  Feb 
ruary,  and  on  the  25th  of  June  he  left  Newbern  for 
his  Northern  home,  where  he  arrived  in  safety. 
After  receiving  proper  treatment  he  recovered  his 
speech  and  health.  He  was  a  good  officer,  a  strict 
disciplinarian,  in  fact  too  much  so,  for  which  some 
few  of  his  company  can  vouch.  But  the  true 
soldier  could  not  help  admiring  him  for  his  bravery 
and  coolness  under  all  circumstances.  I  may  be 
pardoned  for  saying  so  much  about  a  single  line 
officer  when  so  many  are  worthy,  but  justice  to  him 
and  to  his  regiment  demands  that  all  the  slander  and 
abuse  by  which  his  fair  name  has  been  tarnished, 
through  the  malignity  of  two  or  three  spiteful  indi 
viduals,  should  be  refuted  and  his  record  be  estab 
lished  as  his  merits  deserve  it  to  be.  The  slander 
came  from  those  who  could  not  resign  and  go  home 
just  when  they  wanted  to,  and  it  provoked  them  to 
think  he  could  be  discharged  and  they  retained. 

1st.  Lieut.  George  W.  Bisbing  was  promoted  to  a 
Captaincy  on  the  26th  of  June,  1862.  2d.  Lieut. 
George  Schall  was  made  1st.  Lieut,  the  same  day. 
1st.  or  Orderly  Sergeant  Mark  E.  Supplee  was  pro 
moted  2d.  Lieut,  also  at  the  same  time. 

On  the  26th  was  brigade  drill,  which  was  of 
rather  more  interest  than  usual  on  account  of  all  the 
bands  in  the  brigade  being  consolidated  for  the 
occasion,  and  giving  a  concert  on  the  parade  ground 
much  to  the  gratification  of  the  troops  in  the 
vicinity,  and  to  Col.  Ferrero  in  particular,  who 
commanded  the  brigade. 

On  Sunday,  the  29th  of  June,  1862,  the  regiment 


182     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

received  orders  to  hold  itself  in  readiness  at  eight 
hours'  notice,  to  march.  Sixty  rounds  of  ammuni 
tion  were  issued  to  each  man,  and  a  general  belief 
arose  that  Burnside  was  going  to  reinforce  McClel- 
lan,  in  front  of  Richmond.  The  Chaplain  held  wor 
ship  in  the  afternoon,  but  so  anxious  were  the  men 
to  get  on  a  move  that  few  found  their  way  to  church, 
and  employed  the  day  in  packing  up  and  getting 
ready  for  the  march ;  but  the  order  did  not  corne 
that  day,  nor  the  next;  still  the  regiment  held  itself 
in  readiness  to  march  at  any  moment  the  order 
should  come. 

July  1st,  1862,  orders  were  issued  that  all  the 
sick  would  have  to  march,  that  is,  all  those  who 
could  be  kept  on  their  feet.  In  the  evening  the  men 
began  striking  tents  and  gathering  all  the  wood  used 
in  making  their  bunks,  empty  barrels,  boards  and  fire 
wood,  which  were  thrown  into  three  large  piles,  each 
as  high  as  a  two-storied  house,  and  then  setting  fire 
to  them  :  everything  of  that  sort  about  the  camp  was 
consumed.  During  the  conflagration  the  officers 
and  men  indulged  in  all  kinds  of  sport  to  while  away 
the  time,  for  the  light  of  the  bonfires  made  the  camp 
as  light  as  day,  and  no  one  thought  of  lying  down 
that  night  to  sleep.  To  add  more  to  the  pleasures 
of  the  evening  the  band  enlivened  the  scene  with  its 
best  pieces  of  music.  Some  employed  themselves 
in  writing  in  large  letters  caricatures  of  the  Rebellion 
on  pieces  of  boards,  and  nailing  them  to  the  trees  for 
the  edification  of  the  rebels  if  they  should  ever  come 
that  way.  One  of  them  is  given  here  as  a  sample. 

''  The  51st  P.  V.,  having  studied  medicine,  has 
gone  into  the  Pill  business ;  will  open  their  stock 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      183 

about  the  4th  of  July  to  the  patronage  of  the  South 
ern  chivalry,  for  the  benefit  of  Uncle  Samuel. 

"  N.  B. — In  case  of  the  death  of  any  of  the  firm, 
the  business  will  be  conducted  as  usual  by  Uncle 
Sam  &  Co.  After  the  present  stock  is  sold  out,  a 
Grand  Fancy  Military  and  Citizens'  Dress  Ball  will 
be  given  in  the  city  of  Richmond,  Ya. 

"  A.  LINCOLN,  Floor  Manager. 

"GEN.  GEO.  B.  McCLELLAN,  Ass't  Floor  Manager" 

At  3  A.  M.  of  July  2d  the  "assembly"  beat,  and 
the  regiment  formed  on  the  color  line,  and  thence 
started  on  the  march  to  reinforce  McClellan,  in  front 
of  Richmond.  Arrived  at  Newbern  at  daylight  and 
immediately  embarked  on  board  of  the  schooner 
Recruit,  and  in  dropping  down  the  river  the  Recruit 
ran  into  the  regiment's  old  favorite,  the  Cossack. 
Capt.  Bennett,  of  the  Cossack,  made  his  appearance 
on  deck.  Notwithstanding  the  accident,  and  while 
everything  was  confusion  worse  confounded,  the 
51st  could  not  refrain  from  giving  the  heroic  tar 
three  hearty  cheers,  that  made  the  moss-covered 
banks  of  the  Neuse  echo  and  re-echo.  It  took 
pretty  much  all  day  for  all  the  forces  to  embark  and 
get  down  to  the  mouth  of  Slocum's  Creek,  18  miles 
below  Newbern,  where  the  whole  fleet  anchored  for 
the  night.  The  51st  experienced  a  dismal  night  on 
board  of  the  schooner,  it  raining  hard  and  constant 
all  that  time,  and  not  having  any  bunks  below,  the 
men  were  obliged  to  quarter  on  deck,  most  of  them 
sleeping  in  a  sitting  posture,  having  no  room  to  lie 
clown  on  account  of  the  crowded  state  of  the  vessel. 
Daylight  came,  the  rain  pouring  down  in  torrents, 
the  air  feeling  very  chilly,  and  the  men  dripping 


184:     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

wet,  caused  them  to  shiver  and  shake  as  bad  as  if 
they  were  exposed  to  the  wintry  blasts  of  the  more 
northern  States.  The  Kecruit  had  bad  luck  in  get 
ting  ready  to  start ;  everything  appeared  to  go 
wrong,  and  as  the  vessel  was  inadequately  manned 
by  sailors,  a  detail  of  six  men  from  the  regiment 
made  up  the  deficiency,  the  Recruit  getting  under 
weigh  again  about  8  A.  M.  of  the  3d  of  July.  The 
other  portion  of  the  fleet  got  under  weigh  at  day 
light,  and  was  out  of  sight  when  the  Recruit  got  off. 
If  ever  troops  had  reason  to  find  fault  with  the  Gov 
ernment  of  the  United  States,  the  51st  had  ample 
grounds  for  complaint  at  this  time ;  cold  and  wet 
to  the  skin ;  hard  tack  water-soaked  and  useless  ; 
nearly  every  round  of  ammunition  damaged  by 
water,  and  putting  700  or  800  men  on  board  of  a 
vessel  capable  of  accommodating  only  about  300, 
and  even  that  number  would  be  crowded — all  these 
combined  tended  greatly  to  vex  the  men.  The  Re 
cruit  had  not  proceeded  far  before  she  met  the  little 
steamer  Alice  Price,  General  Burnside's  dispatch 
boat,  having  on  board  Col.  Hawkins  of  the  Zouaves, 
(9th  K  Y.)  who  ordered  the  Recruit  to  "halt."  The 
schooner  i(  hove  to,"  and  received  from  Col.  Haw 
kins  the  pleasing  information  "  to  go  back  to  New 
born,  for  Richmond  was  taken."  No  sooner  was  the 
information  received  than  cheer  after  cheer,  long 
and  load,  rent  the  air,  and  the  Recruit  u  about  faced  " 
and  arrived  at  Newbern  at  6  P.  M.,  where  she 
dropped  anchor.  The  51st  remained  on  board  all 
night,  with  the  same  accommodations  as  the  men 
had  the  night  before,  excepting  the  rain.  At  10J 
A.  M.  the  51st  disembarked,  and  companies  A,  B,  C, 
D,  F,  G  and  I  arrived  at  Camp  Reno  at  noon.  Com- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      185 

parries  E,  H  and  K  did  not  get  into  camp  until  4J 
p.  M.  The  camp  was  found  in  nearly  the  same 
condition  as  when  the  regiment  left.  Some  few 
things  that  escaped  burning  had  been  carried  off, 
but  a  hog  was  found  running  about  loose,  and  as 
the  men's  rations  were  nearly  exhausted,  the  hog 
was  shot  to  replenish  the  men's  haversacks.  Tents 
were  pitched ;  everything  soon  settled  down  to  the 
old  style  of  comfort,  and  the  men  enjoyed  one  night 
more  of  good  rest.  But  the  next  morning  (Satur 
day,  the  5th)  brought  information  that  Eichmond 
was  not  taken,  and  the  51st  was  again  under  march 
ing  orders,  to  be  ready  to  move  at  a  moment's 
notice.  This  time  the  order  was  explicit,  and  Rich 
mond  was  the  objective  point  at  which  to  bring  up. 
Consequently,  at  2  A.  M.  on  Sunday,  the  6th,  the 
regiment  was  again  found  striking  tents,  and  by 
daybreak  was  on  its  way  returning  to  Newbern,  all 
being  on  board  of  the  Recruit  at  7J  A.  M.  Why 
rations  were  not  served  to  the  men  on  this  embarka 
tion  remained  always  a  mystery,  but  such  was  the 
case,  and  the  men  were  complaining  bitterly  of  the 
gnawings  of  hunger.  At  noon  the  Recruit  weighed 
anchor  and  proceeded  down  the  river  with  better 
speed  than  on  the  previous  trip.  Reaching  the 
Swash,  Hatteras  Inlet,  at  dark,  she  lay  at  anchor 
there  for  the  night. 

On  Monday,  the  7th,  at  daybreak,  the  Recruit  left 
her  anchorage  and  started  to  pass  out  the  Inlet,  but 
did  not  get  far  before  she  ran  aground  on  the  Swash 
opposite  Forts  Clarke  and  Hatteras.  The  regiment 
was  taken  off  and  landed  on  Hatteras  Island,  where 
the  men  enjoyed  a  fine  sea-bath,  and  collected  a  large 
quantity  of  very  beautiful  sea-shells.  In  the  mean 

9* 


186     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

time  tugs  were  at  work  to  get  the  Recruit  off,  in 
which  they  were  successful,  and  by  noon  the  regi 
ment  was  once  more  afloat ;  the  vessel,  crowding  on 
all  her  sails,  reached  Fortress  Monroe  at  noon  on 
the  8th  of  July,  1862,  making  just  five  months  and 
twenty-eight  days  since  the  51st  P.  V.  left  the  Fort 
ress  until  its  return.  How  many  manly  hearts  beat 
high  in  anticipation  of  the  future  when  the  regiment 
left  the  Fortress  on  the  llth  of  the  previous  Janu 
ary,  that  now,  at  the  regiment's  return,  are  as  silent 
in  their  throbs  as  the  rude  graves  that  encompass 
their  remains !  Peace  be  to  their  ashes  ! 

On  arriving  at  the  Fortress  nearly  all  the  fleet  had 
got  in  ahead  of  the  Recruit.  The  51st  remained  on 
board  of  the  schooner  at  the  above  place  until  the 
next  day,  sleeping  on  deck  as  usual,  but  with  far 
more  satisfaction,  although  the  deck  was  densely 
crowded  and  the  night  was  stifling  warm.  If  the 
weather  was  hot  in  North  Carolina,  it  was  of  a  white 
heat  in  Virginia.  While  the  51st  P.  Y.  was  lying 
at  the  Fortress,  President  Lincoln,  in  company  with 
Gen.  Burnside,  passed  the  Recruit.  His  Excellency 
was  honored  by  a  salute  from  a  man-of-war  at  an 
chor  in  Hampton  Roads,  and  also  from  the  Fortress. 

At  6}  P.  M.  of  the  9th  of  July  the  Recruit  left  for 
Newport  News,  arriving  there  at  8  P.  M.  The  regi 
ment  remained  on  board  all  night,  and  disembark 
ing  the  next  morning  at  8  A.  M.,  it  marched  to  a 
camp  ground  about  half  a  mile  distant  from  the 
point  of  landing.  To  say  that  the  day  was  hot 
would  be  conveying  but  a  very  faint  idea  of  the  in 
tense  heat ;  red  hot,  hotter,  hottest,  comes  nearer  the 
correct  conception.  At  10  A.  M.  the  camp  was  laid 
out  and  the  tents  pitched,  everything  being  fixed  up 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      187 

as  comfortably,  by  evening,  as  circumstances  would 
permit.  This  camp  was  called  "  Camp  Lincoln," 
in  honor  of  the  illustrious  President  of  the  United 
States.  The  amusements  at  this  camp  were,  fishing 
for  crabs,  bathing,  foraging  and  base-ball  playing. 
The  latter  was  the  leading  enjoyment ;  even  the 
officers  indulged  in  this  game  with  right  good  zest, 
the  best  players  being  Col.  Hartranft,  Maj.  Edwin 
Schall,  Capt.  Edward  Schall  and  Private  Young,  of 
Co.  B.  The  duties  were  of  the  usual  kind — brigade 
guard,  picketing,  policing,  with  brigade,  regimental 
and  company  drills.  The  brigade  was  now  under 
the  permanent  command  of  Col.  Ferrero,  Colonel  of 
the  51st  New  York  State  Volunteers. 

The  rations  at  this  camp  were  of  the  most  miser 
able  description.  Although  convenient  to  Fortress 
Monroe,  the  base  of  supplies,  the  men  could  obtain 
but  about  one-fourth  rations,  and  that  of  an  exceed 
ingly  inferior  quality.  Grumbling,  and  justly,  too, 
was  to  be  heard  from  morning  until  night,  "  nothing 
to  eat !"  was  to  be  heard  at  every  turn.  Some 
d d  McClellan  for  the  deficiency,  some  Col.  Fer 
rero,  some  Col.  Hartranft,  and  a  very  few  did  heap 
their  anathemas  on  Gen.  Burnside.  The  scantiness 
of  the  rations  and  the  continuance  of  complaints 
finally  reached  Capt.  McKibbin's  ears,  Burnside's 
Adjutant  General,  who  reported  to  the  old  hero  the 
case,  and  a  few  days  more  of  empty  stomachs  ended 
all  the  trouble,  for  fresh  bread,  fresh  beef,  and  a  full 
allowance  of  everything  in  the  commissary  depart 
ment  was  issued  without  stint,  so  that  the  grumbling 
ceased  once  more.  The  stay  at  Newport  News  was 
of  only  twenty-two  days  duration,  but  in  the  mean 
time  the  regiment  experienced  some  hot  days  and 


188     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIEST   KEGIMENT 

empty  stomachs.  Brigade  guard  was  established 
the  first  day  of  the  landing  of  the  troops  at  Newport 
News.  The  following  order  was  issued  by  Col.  Fer- 
rero  on  the  second  day  of  being  in  Camp  Lincoln: 
"  Coffee,  at  5  A.  M.,  streets  and  tents  policed  at  5J-  A. 
M.,  "  peas  on  trencher"  at  6  A.  M.,  company  drill  at  7J 
A.  M.,  "roast  beef"  at  12  M.,  dress  parade  at  6}  P.M., 
brigade  drill  every  Monday  and  Thursday,  regimen 
tal  drill  every  Tuesday,  Wednesday  and  Friday  at 
4J  p.  M."  It  can  be  seen  that  from  early  morn  to 
close  of  day  the  brigade  under  Ferrero  was  to  have 
but  few  idle  moments.  Brigade  guard-mounting 
was  not  mentioned  in  the  order,  but  still  it  came  off 
daily  at  9  A.  M. 

On  Sunday,  13th  of  July,  Col.  Ferrero  issued  an 
order  giving  the  post  of  honor  to  the  51st  P.  V.  by 
putting  it  on  the  right  of  the  brigade.  On  the  14th 
about  a  dozen  men  were  detailed  from  the  51st  P.  V. 
to  guard  the  "  Parrish  farm."  situated  about  three 
miles  from  camp  on  the  road  leading  to  the  town  of 
Hampton  ;  they  continued  living  at  the  "  top  of  the 
pile  "  during  their  stay  there.  This  same  day  fresh 
bread  was  issued  for  the  first  time  while  we  were 
here. 

The  16th  brought  a  change  in  the  hours  for  regi 
mental  drill  from  4J  to  5J  P.  M.,  on  account  of  the 
intense  heat  at  the  earlier  hour. 

The  mails  were  very  regular  at  Camp  Lincoln, 
coming  in  every  afternoon  at  2  o'clock  and  going 
out  at  9  A.  M.  daily. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEEKS.  189 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

Recruiting — Camp  duty— Robbery — Preparing  for  the  front — 
Again  on  the  Recruit — Arrival  at  Aquia  creek  and  Fred- 
ericksburg — "Rat  coffee" — Sun  strokes — Camp  Fererro — 
Marching  orders — More  recruiting — Officers'  baggage — First 
march  on  the  Pope  campaign — A  quarrel — An  extract  from 
a  letter — Throwing  away  clothing. 

ON  Sunday,  July  20th,  an  order  was  read  off  on 
dress  parade  detailing  one  commissioned  officer,  one 
sergeant,  and  one  corporal  to  go  to  Pennsylvania 
to  recruit.  Capt.  Lynn,  of  Co.  H,  Sergeant  Martin 
Schoch,  of  Co.  E,  and  Corporal  Lewis,  of  Co.  D, 
were  detailed  to  proceed  home  for  recruiting  pur 
poses. 

On  the  22d  of  July  another  order  on  camp  duty 
was  read  off  on  dress  parade,  as  follows :  Reveille  at 
5  A.  M.,  streets  and  tents  policed  at  5.30  A.  M.,  doctor's 
call  and  breakfast  at  6  A.  M.,  company  drill  at  7.30 
A.  M.,  one  hour,  guard  mounting  at  8.30  A.  M.,  dinner, 
12,  M.,  brigade  and  regimental  drills  at  4.30  P.  M., 
dress  parade  at  7.15,  p.  M.;  regiments  to  stack  arms 
on  the  color  line  at  9  A.  M.,  tattoo  at  8.30  p.  M.,  taps 
to  put  out  lights  at  9  P.  M. 

On  the  23d  of  July  a  most  disgraceful  robbery 
took  place  at  the  general  hospital  at  Newport  News. 
Two  kegs  of  butter,  one  box  of  gaiters,  and  four 
hundred  dollars  in  money  were  taken.  The  robbery 
was  traced  to  two  men  belonging  to  the  51st  P.  V. 
The  butter  had  been  sold  at  twenty-five  cents  per 
pound  to  any  one  willing  to  buy ;  but  the  money 
and  gaiters  were  recovered,  and  the  culprits  court- 
martialed  and  punished. 


190     HISTORY   OF  THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

First  brigade  and  part  of  the  third,  with  a  battery 
of  six  pieces,  left  Newport  News  on  the  25th  to  go 
to  Yorktown,  and  speculation  ran  high  as  to  the 
early  departure  of  the  51st  P.  Y.  to  go  to  the  front. 
On  the  27th,  three  hundred  wounded,  sick,  and  well 
prisoners  arrived  from  before  Richmond,  and  caused 
much  rejoicing  in  camp. 

A  novelty  to  the  soldiers  presented  itself  on  the 
29th  of  July,  in  the  form  of  two  white  ladies,  who 
were  on  a  visit  to  Newport  News. 

On  the  30th  of  July  the  regiment  was  taken  out 
about  three  miles  from  camp  for  target  firing,  which 
proved  that  the  51st  P.  V.  possessed  some  excellent 
marksmen. 

The  regiment  received  a  complete  set  of  new  drums 
on  the  1st  of  August,  in  place  of  those  originally 
received  at  Camp  Curtin,  which  had  become  unser 
viceable"  from  long  continuous  use.  In  fact,  this  date 
brought  several  incidents  of  interest  in  the  history 
of  the  51st  P.  V.  All  the  sick  and  convalescents 
belonging  to  the  regiment,  who  had  been  left  at 
Newbern,  N.  C.,  in  the  hospitals,  arrived,  with  the 
exception  of  a  few,  whose  lives  would  have  been 
jeopardized  by  the  removal.  It  is  also  the  day  that 
the  regiment  might  say  its  continuous  marchings 
began  their  birth.  Marching  orders  were  issued  to 
it  that  only  ended  in  its  re-enlistment  in  East  Ten 
nessee.  The  first  order  was  to  be  ready  to  move  at 
a  moment's  notice,  with  three  days'  cooked  rations 
and  one  hundred  rounds  of  ammunition.  Conse 
quently  rations  were  immediately  issued  and  fires 
kindled,  and  soon  the  camp-kettles  were  seething  and 
steaming  with  salt  beef  and  pork,  and  knapsacks 
were  packed  and  all  ready  to  start  in  three  hours 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      191 

after  receiving  orders ;  but  the  final  order  to  leave 
Newport  News  did  not  come  until  6  A.  M.  of  the  2d. 
Tents  were  struck  at  8  A.  M.,  and  the  regiment 
marched  down  to  the  wharf,  and  again  embarked  on 
board  of  the  schooner  Recruit,  quartering  on  the  deck 
as  before.  The  day  was  occupied  in  embarking  the 
remainder  of  the  troops  that  was  encamped  at  that 
place.  At  6  P.  M.  the  Recruit  swung  out  into  the 
stream,  and  left  for  Aquia  Creek ;  arriving  at  For 
tress  Monroe  at  8  o'clock  in  the  evening,  dropped 
anchor  and  remained  there  until  1  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  the  3d,  when  she  again  left,  and  entered 
the  mouth  of  the  Potomac  at  2  P.  M.  of  the  same  day. 
At  6  P.  M.  Gen.  Burnside  passed  the  regiment  on  his 
little  despatch  boat,  and  as  usual  three  cheers  were 
given  for  him  with  a  hearty  good-will.  The  Recruit 
came  to  an  anchor  at  9  p.  M.,  a  little  below  Mount 
Yernon,  on  the  Potomac,  and  started  again  at  6  A.  M. 
on  Monday,  the  4th,  and  arrived  at  the  mouth  of 
Aquia  Creek  at  9  A.  M.  But  one  incident  worthy  of 
note  occurred  during  the  passage  from  Newport 
News,  and  that  was  the  drinking  of  rat  coffee.  A 
large  cauldron  had  been  filled  with  ship's  water  the 
night  previous,  for  the  purpose  of  making  coffee 
early  in  the  morning,  Some  time  during  the  night 
a  couple  of  rats  got  in  the  water,  and  being  unable 
to  get  out,  drowned ;  and,  not  being  discovered  until 
the  coffee  had  been  made,  issued,  and  drank,  the 
effect  of  the  discovery  can  be  better  imagined  than 
described. 

One  hour  after  the  arrival  of  the  Recruit  at  Aquia 
Greek  the  51st  disembarked,  took  the  cars  of  the 
"Aquia  Creek  and  Frederic ksburg  Railroad,"  and 
arrived  at  the  depot  opposite  to  Fredericksburg  at 


192     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIKST   REGIMENT 

1  P.  M.  On  taking  the  cars  at  the  creek  a  large 
number  of  officers  and  men  met  an  old  acquaintance 
in  the  person  of  Thomas  Bones,  Esq.,  who  had  for 
merly  been  a  conductor  for  many  years  on  the 
Chester  Valley  Railroad,  Pa.  It  was  he  who  had 
rebuilt  the  Aquia  Creek  &  Fredericksburg  Kailroad, 
and  was  now  its  chief  superintendent. 

After  arriving  at  the  station  the  regiment  stacked 
arms  in  the  rear  of  the  depot,  and  the  sun  pouring 
down  its  burning  rays  on  the  unsheltered  heads  of 
the  troops,  produced  a  number  of  sunstrokes.  The 
51st  P.  Y.  lay  here  only  about  an  hour,  during 
which  time  Col.  Hartranft  was  busy  in  selecting  a 
suitable  place  for  camp  purposes.  When  he  suc 
ceeded,  he  immediately  took  the  regiment  about  one 
mile  further  back,  and  encamped  it  in  a  splendid 
wheat  field  belonging  to  the  notorious  "  Phillips " 
farm,  nearly  opposite  Fredericksburg.  Sergeant 
David  Long,  of  Co.  D,  received  a  sunstroke  which 
nearly  deprived  him  of  his  life,  while  marching  from 
the  depot  up  to  the  camp  ground.  In  faot,  nearly 
every  man  was  more  or  less  affected  by  the  intense 
heat.  Companies  C  and  G,  not  accompanying  the 
regiment  on  this  trip,  did  not  arrive  till  the  next  day, 
(the  5th.)  This  did  not  become  a  legitimate  camp 
until  the  afternoon  of  the  6th,  when  tents  arrived, 
were  immediately  pitched,  and  then  it  was  named 
"  Camp  Ferrero,"  in  honor  of  Col.  Ferrero,  the  bri 
gade  commander.  The  three  days'  rations  that  had 
been  cooked  on  the  eve  of  departure  from  Newport 
News  were  exhausted,  and  nothing  more  was  issued 
until  the  evening  of  the  6th ;  consequently  hunger 
again  stared  the  men  in  the  face,  and  as  the  regiment 
was  paid  off  on  the  5th,  the  scanty  supply  in  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      193 

neighboring  sutler's  tents  was  soon  bought  up  at 
extravagant  prices  to  satisfy  the  inner  man. 

One  noticeable  feature  was  observed  in  the  appear 
ance  of  the  troops  in  Virginia  and  those  of  the 
Burnside  expedition.  While  the  former  were  as 
white  in  complexion  as  their  Northern  friends  at 
home  were,  the  latter  were  as  dark  as  the  darkest 
mulattoes,  and  had  more  the  appearance  of  an  army 
of  negroes  than  Caucasians. 

On  the  6th  the  entire  brigade  had  dress  parade, 
and  the  most  stringent  orders  were  read  to  each  reg 
iment.  Among  the  duties  assigned  to  the  troops 
was  the  drilling  of  the  commissioned  officers  daily 
from  9  A.  M.  to  10  A.  M.,  and  non-commissioned 
officers  from  10.30  A.  M.  to  11.30  A.  M. 

The  tents  received  here  were  the  "  Sibley,"  or 
round  tents,  each  to  accommodate  fourteen  men, 
which  was  about  six  too  many,  considering  the 
intense  heat,  but  they  were  raised  up  from  the 
ground  a  few  inches  to  allow  the  free  circulation  of 
air,  and  bunks  were  put  up  of  pine  boughs  a  foot 
from  the  earth,  giving  the  air  a  chance  to  circulate 
beneath  them,  adding  much  to  the  comfort  of  the 
men.  But  it  never  failed  that  when  a  regiment 
fixed  up  comfortably  it  soon  received  marching 
orders  ;  and  thus  it  was  with  the  51st  P.  Y.,  for  on 
the  9th  orders  were  received  to  be  ready  to  move 
on  three  hours'  notice,  and  to  leave  all  surplus  cloth 
ing  behind,  packed  up  with  owner's  name  sewed  on 
each  bundle  and  stowed  away  in  large  boxes  for 
that  purpose,  to  be  sent  to  Aquia  Creek  and  placed 
under  guard  for  safe  keeping.  The  men  of  the  51st 
P.  Y.  know  how  safe  their  clothing  was  kept.  When 
they  received  the  lot  again  in  Pleasant  Valley,  Md., 


194     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

only  about  one-fifth  arrived  and  that  in  a  worthless 
condition,  all  the  best  having  been  stolen  long  before 
it  was  shipped  to  the  regiment. 

Although  the  regiment  received  marching  orders 
on  the  9th,  it  did  not  march  until  the  evening  of  the 
12th,  at  6  o'clock. 

On  the  10th  regimental  inspection  was  held  by 
Lieut.  Col.  Bell,  who  was  very  severe  on  heavy 
knapsacks,  arid  again  warned  the  men  of  the  conse 
quence  of  carrying  such  heavy  loads,  but  a  great  many 
turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the  kindly  advice,  through  igno 
rance  of  all  they  had  to  go  through  before  they 
would  need  their  surplus  clothing ;  could  they  have 
foreseen  but  a  fraction  of  their  trials  of  the  future  I 
doubt  if  there  could  have  been  found  one  who 
would  have  carried  even  a  single  extra  shirt. 

On  the  llth  the  brigade  had  a  drill  under  the 
command  of  Col.  Hartranft  for  the  first  time,  and 
although  it  was  his  maiden  attempt,  he  acquitted 
himself  with  the  usual  credit  of  all  and  everything 
he  did  in  a  military  line,  viz.,  excelled  ly  none. 

On  the  7th  another  party  was  detailed  to  proceed 
to  Pennsylvania  to  recruit  for  the  regiment.  Lieut. 
Jacob  P.  Brooks,  of  Co.  F,  Sergeant  George  W. 
Patterson,  of  Co.  I,  and  Sergeant  John  W.  Fair,  of 
Co.  C,  were  detailed,  and  left  the  same  day  for 
Harrisburg,  Pa. 

The  51st  was  still  in  the  2d  Brigade,  Reno's  Divi 
sion,  Burnside's  Expedition,  and  carried  its  title 
until  merged  into  the  9th  Army  Corps. 

On  the  llth,  the  officers  who  did  not  wish  to  be 
encumbered  with  surplus  baggage  sent  it  home  by 
"express,"  as  the  marching  orders  were  still  held 
good.  The  confusion  and  inconvenience  incident  to 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  195 

a  regiment  being  under  marching  orders  for  several 
days,  can  only  be  known  by  soldiers  themselves  ; 
the  suspense  is  only  to  be  equalled  by  that  of  a 
criminal  under  sentence  of  death,  before  the  precise 
fatal  day  is  known. 

At  6  P.  M.  on  the  12th;  the  regiment  formed  on 
the  color  line  preparatory  to  starting  on  its  long  and 
wearisome  march.  Just  as  the  men  had  stacked 
their  arms  a  violent  tornado  swept  over  that  section 
of  country,  ripping  and  tearing  the  large  Sibley 
tents  as  though  they  were  made  of  paper.  The 
tents  occupied  by  the  51st  P.  Y.  were,  per  orders, 
left  standing  by  the  regiment  when  about  leaving, 
but  the  tornado  had  torn  them  from  their  positions 
and  whirled  some  of  them  a  great  distance,  leaving 
the  camp  ground  nearly  divested  of  everything  like 
a  tent  ;  but  the  men,  giving  chase  to  the  flying 
tents,  secured  them,  and  they  were  soon  put  up; 
although  in  a  very  dilapidated  condition.  The  reg 
iment  then  "  fell  in  "  line  and  took  arms.  At  sun 
down,  as  the  regiment  began  to  move,  the  rain 
poured  in  torrents,  filling  all  the  creeks  and  ravines 
to  overflowing,  and  making  the  night's  march  one 
never  to  be  forgotten.  The  darkness  equalled, 
almost  excelled  the  famous  Egyptian  darkness  that 
could  be  felt;  the  mud  knee  deep;  progress  very 
slow ;  halts  frequent  and  the  roads  obstructed  with 
upset  wagons  and  bemired  artillery ;  such  were  the 
circumstances  of  the  forepart  of  the  night's  march. 

As  the  51st  passed  the  camp  of  the  9th  New 
York,  (Zouaves,)  a  quarrel  came  near  being  created 
which  might  have  resulted  in  a  serious  fight  had  not 
some  of  the  officers  of  the  Zouaves  interfered  and 
put  a  stop  to  the  inflammable  language  used  by 


196     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

both  parties.  The  foundation  of  the  quarrel  was 
built  on  an  article  that  appeared  in  a  newspaper 
published  somewhere  in  the  interior  of  Pennsyl 
vania.  The  article  purported  to  have  been  written 
by  an  officer  of  the  olst  P.  V.,  giving  a  description 
of  the  battle  of  South  Mills,  Camden,  1ST.  C.,  and 
stating  that  while  the  51st  P.  V.  were  hotly  engaged 
in  the  battle,.  "  Hawkins'  Zouaves  were  in  the  rear 
plundering  the  knapsacks  of  the  51st  P.  V."  The 
writer  never  saw  the  article  in  question,  but  if  such 
a  one  did  exist,  I  care  not  if  it  was  officer  or  enlisted 
man  that  wrote  it,  I  emphatically  stamp  it  as  a  base 
and  villanous  falsehood  ;  for  there  was  not  half  a 
dozen  knapsacks  carried  by  the  regiment  on  that 
occasion ;  and  again,  what  few  had  been  brought 
from  Newbern  were  left  on  board  of  the  Admiral 
when  the  regiment  disembarked.  Hard  words 
passed  between  the  two  regiments,  and  they  were 
forever  afterwards  rank  enemies.  That  the  article 
had  been  published  in  the  paper  could  not  be 
denied,  for  some  friend  of  the  Zouave  regiment  had 
put  the  paper  in  a  wrapper  and  mailed  it  to  the 
Zouaves.  The  regiment  halted  for  a  couple  of 
hours  rest  and  to  get  breakfast  at  4  A.  M.,  on  the 
13tb,  near  the  Yellow  House,  about  eight  miles 
from  Fredericksburg.  This  Yellow  House  must  not 
be  confounded  with  the  Yellow  Tavern  on  the  Wei- 
don  Eailroad.  At  6  A.  M.  the  regiment  again  moved 
off  under  a  scorching  hot  sun  and  in  plenty  of  rnud; 
but  by  noon  the  marching  began  to  improve  as  the 
mud  disappeared.  The  heat  caused  a  great  many 
to  lag  behind,  and  stragglers  lined  the  road  all 
day  and  night.  At  noon  the  regiment  halted  for 
dinner  at  a  secesh  farm,  which  had  a  fine  peach 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      197 

orchard  on  it,  the  trees  loaded  with  the  ripe  and 
luscious  fruit.  As  soon  as  "  halt  "  was  commanded, 
the  boys  made  a  charge  at  double-quick  on  the 
peaches,  and  only  a  few  minutes  sufficed  to  clear 
the  orchard  of  all  of  its  choice  fruit. 

The  writer  has  just  got  possession  of  a  letter  that 
was  sent  to  a  friend  of  one  of  the  members  of  the 
51st  P.  Vv  dated  Culpepper  Court  House,  Va. 
August  15,  1862,  giving  a  detailed  account  of  the 
march  from  Camp  Ferrero  to  Culpepper,  in  more 
explicit  language  than  the  author  of  this  history  is 
capable  of  commanding. 

"#•»##  Just  a  few  minutes  before  we  left  Camp  Ferrero,  I 
wrote  to  you  to  let  you  know  that  we  were  about  marching. 
Well,  on  Monday  evening,  at  G  o'clock,  we  left  Camp  Ferrero 
in  a  tremendous  storm,  but  by  the  time  that  we  had  crossed 
the  valley  between  Camp  Ferrero  and  Falmouth,  it  had  ceased 
to  rain.  I  will  give  you  a  succinct  account  of  our  march 
as  far  as  I  have  the  time  and  abilities  to  make  it  worth  reading 
to  you.  Falmouth  is  but  one  and  a-half  miles  in  a  straight  line 
from  where  Camp  Ferrero  lay  ;  but  by  the  road  we  had  to 
march,  on  account  of  the  mud  and  high  hills,  it  was  about  four 
miles.  I  will  first  give  you  the  incidents  from  Camp  Ferrero 
to  Falmouth.  The  1st  brigade  composed  of  the  Gth  N.  H. , 
89th  K  Y.,  48th  P.  V.,  and  the  3d  Maryland  under  Gen.  Par 
ker,  with  DurreH's  Reading  Artillery,  about  forty  baggage- 
wagons,  and  two  companies  of  U.  S.  Dragoons,  started  on  the 
advance.  Then  our  3d  brigade,  under  Col.  Hartranft,  who  is 
acting  brigadier-general  of  this  brigade,  consisting  of  the  51st 
P.  V.,  51st  N.  Y.,  and  the  21st  Mass.  ;  all  under  command  of 
Gen.  Burnside.  Well,  it  rained  while  we  were  starting,  and 
we  left  all  our  tents  standing  ;  for  we  were  to  have  no  more 
living  in  tents.  It  was  just  dark  by  the  time  we  got  fairly  on 
our  tedious  march.  Nothing  of  interest  transpired  until  after 
we  crossed  the  valley,  except  the  numerous  halts  we  had  to 
make  in  consequence  of  the  slow  progress  of  the  battery  and 
wagon  trains  in  getting  onward.  After  crossing  the  valley, 
and  ascending  one  of  the  first  ranges  of  hills,  we  had  to  come  to 
a  halt,  by  the  upsetting  of  one  of  the  six-horse  teams  into  a 


198     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

ditch,  on  the  roadside,  of  about  five  feet  deep.  After  halting 
one  hour  for  it  to  get  out  of  the  ditch,  we  started  off  and  left  it 
in  the  ditch,  bottom  upwards.  We  got  along  very  slow,  for  the 
roads  were  very  slippery.  When  within  about  one  mile  of  Fal- 
rnouth,  the  battery  stuck  fast  in  the  mire,  causing  a  long  deten 
tion  again  ;  but,  however,  it  got  out  again,  and  we  started  once 
more,  expecting  to  keep  on  going  ;  but,  not  so  ;  for  just  as  the 
wagon  train  was  crossing  a  bridge  at  Falmouth,  a  wagon  con 
taining  nothing  but  ammunition,  which  is  very  heavy,  broke 
through  the  bridge.  Two  mules  were  killed,  and  there  was  a 
long  stoppage,  making  it  12  o'clock,  midnight,  when  we  reached 
Falmouth.  Four  miles  in  six  hours  !  You  can't  imagine  how 
tedious  it  is  to  march  five  minutes,  and  stand  thirty  minutes, 
with  knapsacks  and  everything  else  buckled  and  strapped 
up  tight  to  your  body.  Well,  the  bridge  once  fixed  up  again, 
we  crossed  over,  but  had  not  gone  two  hundred  yards,  when 
going  down  a  very  steep  hill,  over  goes  another  wagon  loaded 
with  camp  kettles,  grub,  and  such  baggage  as  the  officers  had 
along.  This  wagon  went  over  a  high  precipice,  at  the  bottom 
of  which  was  a  pool  of  water  ;  the  wagon  was  broken  to  atoms, 
the  camp  kettles  and  baggage  all  smashed  up ;  the  mules  were 
all  dragged  over  with  it,  but  were  very  little  hurt,  I  believe. 
The  column  pushed  on,  and  left  the  wagon  in  the  hole  ;  but  we 
had  not  proceeded  two  hundred  yards,  when,  bottom  upwards, 
goes  another  wagon  ;  and  after  that  we  did  not  bother  with  the 
wagons,  but  pushed  on  until  after  daylight,  Avhen  we  halted  for 
a  couple  of  hours  for  the  purpose  of  resting,  eating  a  bite,  and 
getting  a  little  sleep.  How  far  we  marched  is  more  than  I  can 
say,  but  I  know  we  were  tired.  After  our  nap  we  started  again, 
and  this  time,  our  brigade  being  on  the  advance,  we  did  not 
stop  much  for  the  wagons ;  Col.  Hartranffc  pushing  on  so  as  to 
go  past  and  let  them  get  in  the  rear.  Our  march  now  became 
very  hard  ;  for,  marching  all  the  night  before,  and  getting  only 
about  an  hour's  sleep,  we,  as  a  matter  of  course,  were  jaded 
out.  Still  we  kept  on  till  noon,  when  the  48th  P.  V.  had  a 
brush  with  the  guerrillas,  which,  caused  a  detention  of  an  hour 
or  so.  I  did  not  see  anything  of  the  fight,  and  in  fact  very 
few,  except  those  engaged,  saw  anything  of  it ;  for  we  hardly 
came  to  a  halt  before  we  were  down  in  the  mud  sound  asleep. 
I  did  not  hear  a  gun  fired.  All  I  knew  was  that  the  48th  had 
charged  on  guerrillas,  and  drove  them.  We  started  again,  and 
at  4  r.  M.  we  halted  to  get  water  and  eat  a  bite  ;  but  I  was  so 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      199 

tired,  and  my  feet  so  sore,  that,  instead  of  eating,  I  did  as  hun 
dreds  of  others  did — I  laid  down,  and  took  my  rations  out  in  a 
nap.  AVe  started  again,  but  my  feet,  like  others,  were  so  sore 
that  I  resolved,  with  seven  others  of  the  51st  N.  Y.,  and  one 
other  out  of  my  company,  to  evade  the  rear  guards,  stop  in  the 
woods  all  night,  and  run  the  risk  of  being  "gobbled  up"  by 
the  guerrillas.  We  did  so  ;  but  only  by  the  skin  of  our  teeth  ; 
for  we  just  got  our  blankets  unfolded,  when  the  rear  guard 
passed  us.  We  even  held  our  breaths  for  fear  of  discovery  as 
they  passed  within  ten  feet  of  our  concealment ;  but  the  dark 
ness  saved  us.  There  were  about  one  hundred  men  in  the 
guard.  As  soon  as  they  passed  us,  we  loaded  our  guns,  de 
termined  to  sell  our  lives  as  dear  as  possible  should  the  guer 
rillas  find  us.  About  12  o'clock,  midnight,  horsemen  passed 
close  to  us — sometimes  not  more  than  six  feet  from  us  ;  but  I 
can't  say  whether  they  were  our  pickets  or  guerrillas,  for  none 
of  us  cared  about  making  their  acquaintance  under  the  circum 
stances  ;  but  we  judged  them  to  be  guerrillas  lurking  in  the  rear 
of  our  column  for  the  purpose  of  capturing  stragglers  as  they 
lag  behind  from  fatigue  ;  but  we  did  not  lose  a  man.  The  rear 
of  the  column  was  six  or  seven  miles  in  advance  of  us  ;  for  it 
marched  until  midnight  before  it  bivouacked.  We  got  up 
an  hour  before  daylight,  and  marched  on  until  a  little  after 
daylight,  when  we  heard  the  bugle  sounding  for  the  teamsters 
to  feed  their  mules.  We  knew  then  that  we  were  not  far  off 
from  the  column.  So,  feeling  perfectly  safe,  we  laid  down  and 
took  a  couple  hours  of  oh  !  the  sweetest  sleep  !  and  then  got 
up,  and  feeling  fresh,  we  started  off  and  came  up  to  the  regi 
ment  just  as  it  was  getting  ready  to  march;  but  this  time  we 
only  had  about  five  miles  to  go  before  we  got  to  Bealton  Sta 
tion,  on  the  Orange  and  Alexander  Railroad.  As  this  road  is 
now  under  our  control,  and  has  been  since  last  Saturday,  we 
took  the  cars  for  Culpepper  Court-house,  where  we  took  up 
our  quarters  in  an  open  lot  back  of  the  town  and  pitched  a  few 
tents  that  were  got  in  the  town  ;  but  we  had  not  been  there 
above  an  hour  or  so,  before  we  were  again  ordered  off." 

After  the  regiment  had  dinner  and  cleaned  out  the 
peach  orchard,  it  started  off  towards  Bealton.  The 
heat  now  became  intense,  and  seemed  to  beat  the 
men  down  to,  the  ground  despite  their  efforts  to 


200     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

keep  up.  Knapsacks,  haversacks,  blankets,  shirts, 
blouses,  pants,  shoes  and  stockings,  were  thrown 
away  without  a  regret ;  the  road  was  literally  cov 
ered  with  clothing,  most  of  it  newly  drawn ;  but 
everything  that  could  possibly  be  spared  was  thrown 
away ;  a  large  number  even  took  off  the  shirts  they 
were  wearing,  and  threw  them  along  with  the  other 
things.  Nearly  all  of  those  things  could  have  been 
saved,  or  at  least  the  labor  of  carrying  them,  had 
the  men  listened  to  the  advice  of  Lieut.-Col.  Bell 
previous  to  starting  on  this  march. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Bealton  Station — Culpepper — The  Rapidan — Retreating — Fight 
at  Kelly's  Ford — Formation  of  the  Ninth  Army  Corps — 
Rappahannock  Station — More  righting — Cowardice  at  Sul 
phur  Springs — Warrenton — Hard  marching  and  hunger — 
Stuart's  "Black  Horse"  cavalry — Warrenton  Junction — 
Rest  and  food — Junction  with  Union  Army  at  Gainesville — 
Manassas  Plains — Severe  battles. 

ON  Thursday,  the  14th,  at  10  A.  M.,  the  regiment 
arrived  at  Bealton  Station,  on  the  0.  and  A.  R.  R., 
•tired  and  worn  out.  It  filed  into  a  field  close  to  the 
station,  stacked  arms,  cooked  dinner,  and  left  on  the 
cars  for  Culpepper  at  1.30  p.  M.,  arriving  at  Tele 
graph  station  at  3  P.  M.  and  at  Culpepper  at  4  p.  M.7 
where  it  disembarked  and  marched  to  the  back  of  the 
town  and  bivouacked  for  an  hour,  when  orders  were 
received  to  proceed  about  three  miles  further  on,  ar 
riving  a  little  before  sundown  and  quartering  in  a 
meadow.  In  marching  from  Culpepper  to  this  place 
the  greatest  surprise  and  enthusiasm  was  manifested 
by  the  troops  already  there  at  the  appearance  of 
Gen.  Burnside's  expeditionary  force. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      201 

The  olst  bivouacked  in  the  lowest  part  of  the 
meadow,  as  there  was  no  choice,  and  without  tents 
or  shelter  of  any  kind  it  was  obliged  to  lie  in  the 
heavy  rain  of  its  first  night  in  this  place ;  but  all 
slept  soundly  and  got  up  the  next  morning  much 
refreshed  after  their  tedious  march  from  Camp  Fer- 
rero.  The  regiment  remained  here  until  3  p.  M.  of 
the  loth,  when  it  again  took  up  the  line  of  march 
and  proceeded  about  four  miles  outside  of  the  picket 
lines  to  within  a  short  distance  of  Eaccoon  ford,  on 
the  Rapidan  river,  where  it  arrived  a  little  before 
sundown.  It  had  rained  nearly  all  day  and  the 
marching  was  most  horrible.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
elements  had  combined  to  make  the  regiment  suffer 
all  the  inconvenience  of  being  without  shelter,  for  it 
rained  whenever  the  regiment  had  to  march,  and  the 
sun  poured  down  its  scotching  rays  upon  it  when 
ever  it  made  a  halt  or  bivouacked. 

On  the  16th  a  detail  of  six  men  was  made  to  ac 
company  Lieut.  Hall,  Assist.  Quartermaster  of  the 
Division,  on  a  foraging  expedition.  They  took  three 
wagons  and  went  to  James  Somerville's  mill,  at  Rac 
coon  ford,  and  loaded  up  the  wagons  with  corn,  much 
against  the  proprietor's  will,  not,  however,  without 
giving  him  proper  vouchers  to  enable  him  to  get  his 
pay.  While  Mr.  Somerville  was  loading  the  corn 
the  men  were  foraging  through  the  house,  garden, 
and  aviary.  They  succeeded  in  getting  a  few 
chickens,  potatoes,  onions,  cabbage  and  a  large 
quantity  of  honey,  both  strained  and  in  the  comb. 
After  the  corn  was  loaded  it  was  taken  to  camp  and 
unloaded,  and  the  wagons  again  proceeded  to  within 
sight  of  the  aforesaid  corn-crib  for  another  load,  and 

discovered  the  enemy  loading  corn  from   the  same 

10 


202     HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMEiNT 

crib.  The  teams  "  about  faced  "  and  went  back  to 
camp  on  a  double-quick,  when  it  was  discovered  that 
Stonewall  Jackson  was  pitching  his  tents  on  an  emi 
nence  not  far  off  from  us  and  close  to  Slaughter 
Mountain.  They  were  seen  to  signal  with  flags  from 
the  top  of  Cedar  Mountain  in  daytime  and  at  night 
with  lights.  On  Monday,  18th  of  August,  1862,  the 
band  belonging  to  the  51st  P.  V.  were  discharged 
and  left  for  their  homes  the  same  day. 

The  enemy  was  seen  to  be  gathering  a  large  force 
on  the  top  of  a  range  of  hills  in  the  rear  of  Raccoon 
ford,  on  the  Rapidan.  The  discovery  was  made  on 
the  16th,  and  enough  had  been  seen  to  know  that  it 
was  their  intention  to  sweep  down  upon  the  "Yan 
kees  "  in  the  night  and  "gobble  them  up  at  one  fell 
swoop;"  but  in  this  they  met  a  disappointment,  for 
the  hint  was  taken  and  a  hurried  retreat  of  the 
Union  forces  commenced  near  midnight.  The  51st 
P.  V.  brought  up  the  rear  of  the  division  in  the  re 
treat,  "Stonewall"  pressing  it  hard  succeeded  in 
capturing  about  a  dozen  of  the  slow-footed  ones  of 
the  51st.  So  rapid  was  this  retreat  made  that  the 
regiment  passed  through  Stevensonburg  at  7  A.  M.  of 
the  next  day.  Making  the  march  of  twenty-eight 
miles  in  eight  hours,  without  a  single  rest,  the  regi 
ment  forded  several  rivers  and  streams  and  finally 
made  a  stand  at  Kelly's  ford,  on  the  Rappahannock. 
Stonewall's  forces  kept  close  to  the  rear  of  the  Union 
troops.  Shortly  after  arriving  at  Kelly's  ford  Maj. 
Schall  sent  his  brother,  W.  P.  Schall,  and  James 
Whitehead,  of  Co.  D,  to  a  house  that  was  within 
sight  of  the  regiment  to  get  him  some  butter  and  other 
articles  of  food.  They  were  in  the  house  but  a  few 
minutes  when  the  rebels  entered  it  and  took  them 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  203 

prisoners.  Nothing  further  transpiring  after  the 
regiment  halted,  it  went  into  quarters  for  the  bal 
ance  of  the  day  and  night ;  rude  sheltering  was  put 
up  and  a  good  night's  rest  enjoyed  by  the  over- 
marched  men  until  towards  daylight,  when  the  regi 
ment  was  aroused  by  the  uneasiness  of  the  enemy 
and  the  firing  of  picket  shots.  Twenty  rounds  more 
of  cartridges  were  issued  to  the  men,  everything  of 
inferior  value  was  ordered  to  be  burnt,  and  letters 
forbidden  to  be  written,  by  order  of  Gen.  John  Pope. 
Two  shots  were  fired  by  Durrell's  battery  at  a  lot  of 
rebel  cavalry  who  showed  themselves  at  the  edge  of 
the  woods  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  ford.  Co.  D, 
Capt.  Schall,  was  sent  out  on  picket  to  prevent  a  sur 
prise.  An  attack  was  momentarily  expected,  and  at 
11  A.  M.  of  the  21st  the  ball  opened  that  did  not  end 
until  the  sound  of  the  last  gun  had  died  away  on  the 
17th  of  September,  1862,  among  the  hills  enclosing 
Antietarn.  The  battle  opened  near  the  Rappahan- 
nock  Station  at  11  A.  M.,  and  at  12  noon  it  began  in 
front  of  the  51st  by  the  Union  cavalry  crossing  at 
Kelly's  ford  and  skirmishing  the  woods,  in  which 
the  rebel  cavalry  were  as  thick  as  hair  on  a  horse. 
The  1st  Brigade  had  met  Longstreet's  skirmishers 
and  had  driven  them  back  several  miles.  The  51st 
P.  V.  supported  Durrell's  battery  through  this  long 
series  of  hard  fighting.  The  fighting  ended  at  6  P. 
M.  in  our  favor,  Gen.  Siegel  capturing  nineteen  guns 
and  the  48th  P.  V.  two  guns  ;  the  loss  was  two 
killed  and  seven  wounded.  That  night  the  51st  lay 
on  their  arms  in  one  of  the  usual  rains,  and  was  re 
lieved  at  daylight  by  a  portion  of  McClellan's  forces. 
The  51st  then  went  to  reinforce  McDowell  at  Rappa- 
hannock  Station,  arriving  there  in  time  to  get  a  cup 


204     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

of  coftee  made  before  the  rebels  opened  their  artil 
lery,  which  they  did  soon  after.  The  regiment 
stacked  arms  in  a  stubble  field  north  of  the  station. 

The  •  expeditionary  forces  of  Burnside  were 
merged  into  the  9th  Army  Corps  about  the  12th  of 
August,  1862,  but  the  men  knew  nothing  of  the 
c  ange  until  about  the  16th. 

After  the  51st  arrived  at  Rappahannock  station 
it  was  put  on  temporary  reserve  and  again  marched 
at  4  p.  M.,  proceeding  farther  up  the  river,  halting 
in  mud  and  rain  about  every  half  a  mile  during 
the  day  and  night,  without  any  rations  excepting  an 
ear  of  green  corn  that  was  occasionally  found  in 
the  devastated  cornfields  along  the  line  of  march. 

At  6  A.  M.  on  the  23d  the  battle  opened  in  good 
earnest  on  both  sides;  the  51st  was  again  ordered 
on  the  march  at  that  time  without  obtaining  one 
mouthful  of  food  until  noon,  when,  through  the 
violence  of  the  severe  storm,  the  regiment  was 
forced  to  a  halt  in  the  vicinity  of  a  cornfield.  The 
thunder  vieing  with  the  artillery's  roar,  .and  the 
lightning  with  the  cannon's  flash.  This  storm  will 
be  remembered  by  the  men  of  the  51st  from  the 
fact  of  a  negro  being  killed  by  the  lightning  while 
sitting  on  his  mule  close  to  the  regiment.  While 
at  this  halt  several  cows  were  seen  running  at  large, 
and  Col.  Hartranft  gave  his  consent  to  his  men  to 
shoot  and  dress  them  for  the  use  of  the  regiment, 
but  they  were  no  sooner  shot  down  than  each  man 
dressed  his  own  piece.  Fires  were  kindled,  corn 
was  pulled  and  roasted,  and  the  meat  thrown  into 
the  ashes  to  cook  the  best  it  might,  and  with  every 
prospect  of  having  one  hearty  rneal  at  any  rate  the 
men  felt  satisfied ;  but  in  this  the  majority  were 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      205 

disappointed,  for  orders  came  to  march  with  all  the 
speed  possible.  Col.  Hartranft  who,  along  with  the 
other  officers,  were  expecting  a  feast  with  their  men 
on  roasted  green  corn  and  beef,  secured  a  handful 
of  this  savory  meal,  as  the  rest  did,  vaulted  into 
his  saddle  with  promptness  and  started  off  again, 
leaving  the  most  of  the  food  in  the  fires,  not  even 
having  time  to  secure  it  in  its  partially  cooked 
state.  A  large  number  of  men  snatched  a  piece  of 
meat  from  the  hot  coals  and  ate  it  as  they  marched 
along,  with  the  blood  and  ashes  running  down  from 
the  corners  of  their  mouths.  Two  crackers  were 
all  the  rations  that  each  man  had  had  in  four  days  ; 
what  the  officers  got  in  that  time  is  hard  to  say,  but 
it  could  not  have  been  much  more,  as  they  were 
obliged  to  buy  their  own  food  from  the  citizens, 
who  in  this  region  had  nothing  scarcely  to  eat  for 
themselves. 

That  night  the  regiment  was  sent  out  on  picket, 
and  at  daylight  it  started  for  Warrenton  Junction. 
After  going  a  few  miles  it  halted  to  get  something 
to  eat ;  two  crackers  and  a  little  tea  was  issued  to 
the  men,  and  that  was  all  they  got  for  a  breakfast, 
which  had  to  serve  until  the  next  day.  After  par 
taking  of  their  scanty  meal  the  regiment  again 
started  and  reached  Sulphur  Springs  at  9  p.  M.  on 
the  24th.  This  day  proved  how  trustworthy  was 
the  word  of  those  men  who  had  been  under  arrest 
at  Newbern  for  cowardice.  Before  the  column 
halted  at  Sulphur  Springs  the  rebel  artillery  fired 
several  rifle  shells  at  the  regiment,  and  one  of  them 
exploding  over  the  heads  of  the  51st  pioneers,  one 
of  whom  had  been  of  the  party  under  arrest  in 
North  Carolina,  he  no  sooner  heard  the  explosion 


206     HISTOKY"    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIEST   KEGIMENT 

than  be  threw  away  his  axe  and  ran  until  he  felt 
himself  safe,  his  company  officers  not  hearing  any 
thing  of  him  until  after  his  arrival  in  the  vicinity 
of  his  home  in  Pennsylvania.  The  others  of  his 
ilk  did  not  run  home,  but  kept  out  of  harm's  way 
until  the  entire  campaign  was  over,  from  Kelly's 
Ford  to  Washington.  Some  rejoined  the  regiment 
at  the  latte'r  place,  but  no  sooner  did  a  shell  ex 
plode  near  them  than  these  same  men  would  leave 
for  safer  places ;  none  of  them  can  have  the  proud 
satisfaction  of  ever  saying,  "  I  have  participated  in 
one  battle."  Such  characters  as  these  are  ever  ready 
to  raise  a  quarrel  in  a  bar-room  or  with  a  comrade, 
where  there  is  no  particular  danger,  but  put  them 
in  the  vicinity  of  a  battle  and  their  courage  oozes 
out :  they  then  become  very  amiable  and  harmless. 
For  what  could  such  men  have  enlisted  ?  was  it  to 
make  the  courageous  think  that  they  too  have 
courage?  I  admit  it  requires  a  man  "to  screw  his 
courage  up  to  the  sticking  point"  when  about 
beginning  a  battle,  but  none  is  required  to  have 
one's  name  on  a  muster  roll. 

On  Monday,  August  25th,  the  51st  P.  V.  again 
took  up  the  line  of  march  at  daybreak,  on  the 
Warrenton  turnpike  for  YVarrenton,  where  it  arrived 
at  noon,  worn  out,  sore  of  foot,  and,  worst  of  all, 
completely  famished  for  something  to  eat.  Halting 
on  a  small  hill  close  to  the  road  in  an  open  space 
between  two  woods  it  formed  into  a  line  of  battle  to 
resist  a  charge  from  Stuart's  black  horse  cavalry, 
which  was  a  short  distance  off'  manoeuvring  to 
capture  the  9th  Corps  wagon  train,  or  whatever  else 
they  could  succeed  in  accomplishing  in  that  line. 
Notwithstanding  the  expectation  of  an  attack  from 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      207 

that  celebrated  cavalry  every  moment,  Col.  Ferrero 
rode  up  to  where  Col.  Hartranft  had  taken  his 
position.  His  appearance  caused  from  his  whole 
brigade  a  general  cry  of  "crackers!  crackers !  hard 
tack !  hard  tack !"  Ferrero,  sitting  on  his  horse, 
turned  and  faced  his  men  and  exclaimed,  in  tones 
partaking  of  anger  and  pity,  "My  God!  men,  I 
have  been  trying  to  get  you  something  to  eat  ever 
since  daylight.  I  have  had  every  wagon  in  the  train 
searched  to  discover  a  single  box  of  crackers,  but 
with  no  success ;  but  if  there  is  a  mouthful  to  be 
had  in  the  army  you  shall  have  it  before  you  leave 
here,"  and  wheeling  his  horse  he  started  off  at  full 
gallop,  amid  deafening  yells  from  the  51st  P.  Y.  of 
"  crackers !  crackers !  "  &c.  The  cavalry  charge  was 
not  made,  but  the  51st  still  kept  its  position,  when, 
after  Ferrero's  absence  of  an  hour,  he  succeeded  in 
getting  two  boxes  of  hard  tack  for  each  regiment  of  his 
brigade,  which,  when  issued,  gave  to  each  man  about 
one  and  a  half  crackers,  or  near  three  ounces  weight 
of  food.  Hunger  now  began  to  tell  on  the  men  in 
their  marches ;  their  emaciated  forms  were  getting 
weaker  and  weaker  at  every  mile  marched.  How 
could  it  be  expected  that  officers  and  men  could 
fight  all  day  and  march  all  night  for  upwards  of 
forty  days  and  nights  without  more  than  two  hours 
rest  in  the  twenty-four,  and  with  less  than  half 
rations  on  an  average?  but  such  was  the  experience 
of  the  51st  P.  V.  from  the  12th  of  August  to  the 
24th  day  of  September,  1862,  the  fatigues  of  which 
time  was  increased  by  the  continual  whirl  of  excite 
ment,  constant  heavy  rains,  and  almost  unfathomable 
depths  of  mud  and  quicksand. 


208      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

The  51st  P.  V.  left  its  position  at  4  p.  M.  and 
marched  until  10  p.  M.,  and  took  up  a  position  in  a 
meadow  within  one  mile  of  the  Junction,  where  it 
lay  on  its  arms  until  daylight.  The  nights  now 
were  becoming  cold  and  chilly,  heavy  dews  falling, 
and  the  men  very  scantily  clothed,  some  not  the 
owners  of  a  shirt;  all  filthy,  dirty,  ragged  and  cov 
ered  with  vermin.  The  soldiers  could  not  help  this 
condition,  for  no  time  was  given  them  to  wash  a 
handkerchief,  much  less  necessary  clothing,  for  with 
the  perspiration,  rain,  mud  and  dust  settling  in  and 
upon  it,  without  any  change  whatever,  there  was  no 
other  alternative  expected  than  to  become  dirty  and 
covered  with  foul  vermin ;  consequently,  the  night 
was  spent  in  misery.  Gen.  Reno,  whenever  he 
made  his  appearance  along  the  line  of  his  division, 
had  been  invariably  greeted  with  hearty  cheers,  but 
now  the  cheers  were  turned  to  "coffee!"  "hard 
tack!"  "meat!"  &c. ;  and  being  a  very  humane 
officer,  it  pained  him  exceedingly  to  hear  the  men 
clamor  for  rations  when  he  knew  that  he  had  ex 
hausted  every  means  to  obtain  them ;  but  still  the 
men  would  believe  nothing  else  than  that  the  officers 
could  get  rations  for  them  if  they  would  only  try. 
But  such  was  not  the  case.  Col.  Hartranft  was 
using  every  means  that  his  fertile  brain  could  in 
vent  to  obtain  a  few  mouthfuls  for  his  men,  but  all 
to  no  purpose.  Had  the  officers  had  anything  more 
to  eat  than  the  men.  then  the  appearance  would 
have  been  against  them,  but  they  were  as  a  general 
thing,  on  this  march,  much  worse  off  than  the  men, 
for  while  the  latter  got  a  cracker  a  day,  some  of  the 
officers  did  not  get  a  mouthful  for  forty-eight  hours. 
Prices  for  a  single  cracker  varied  from  ten  cents  to 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      209 

fifty  cents,  and  even  at  these  exorbitant  prices 
none,  or  very  few,  changed  owners. 

On  Tuesday,  the  26th,  the  51st  again  started  on 
its  march  at  7  A.  M.,  and  marched  to  the  east  side  of 
Warrenton  Junction  about  one  mile,  where  it  came 
to  a  halt  for  the  rest  of  the  day.  While  at  this  halt 
the  filthy  condition  of  the  men  appealed  to  the 
"commanding  powers"  for  the  necessity  of  giving 
the  men  time  enough  to  wash  their  clothing  and  to 
rid  themselves  of  their  superfluous  companions,  the 
vermin  ;  for  it  had  been  nearly  three  weeks  since 
anything  had  been  washed  by  either  officers  or  men. 

This  day  the  men  had  a  good  feast,  for  three  days' 
full  rations  of  coffee,  sugar,  hard-tack  and  pork 
were  issued  and  ordered  to  be  cooked  for  the  next 
march,  but  so  famished  were  the  men  that  nearly 
one-half  of  them  consumed  their  three  days'  rations 
in  one.  The  day  was  spent  in  washing  clothes, 
bathing  in  Broad  Run,  and  hunting  the  vermin  that 
claimed  entire  possession  of  their  habitations.  Tired 
and  worn  out  as  the  men  were,  they  seemingly  for 
got  all  their  troubles  as  soon  as  they  got  the  inner 
man  satisfied.  Jokes  and  slang  phrases  once  more 
ruled  the  day,  and  all  seemed  as  happy  and  con 
tented  in  their  misfortunes  and  dangers  as  if  they 
were  in  camp  for  all  time  to  come.  The  next  morn 
ing,  early,  the  regiment  left  Warrenton  Junction 
again  for  Warrenton  village,  but  after  marching  out 
the  railroad  three  miles  it  was  found  that  the  rebels 
had  slipped  by  on  the  flank,  and  were  making  for 
Manassas  Grand  Junction.  The  regiment  "  about 
faced"  and  struck  out  for  the  Junction,  arriving  at 
Gainesville  about  8  P.  M.,  where  McClellan's  forces, 

having  had  a  fight  in  the  afternoon  and  been  victo- 

10* 


210     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIKST  REGIMENT 

rious,  were  encamped  on  the  battle-field.  The  51st 
passed  on  over  the  battle-field  and  went  into  quarters 
for  the  night. 

On  Thursday,  the  28th,  the  51st  again  started  at 
daylight  for  the  Junction,  arriving  there  at  noon, 
and  found  that  the  enemy  had  been  there  and  ^de 
stroyed  a  whole  train  of  cars  loaded  with  supplies 
for  the  Union  army.  The  cars  were  still  burning 
when  the  51st  arrived.  At  the  end  of  a  reconnois- 
sance  the  regiment  again  started  after  the  enemy 
who  was  engaged  with  McDowell's  forces  on  the 
Plains  of  Manassas.  The  battle  raged  there  until 
night,  and  the  51st  bivouacked  among  the  fortifica 
tions  about  three  miles  north  of  the  Junction. 


CHAPTER    XY. 

Second  buttle  of  Bull  Run — Supporting  DurrelPs  battery — 
Second  day's  fight — Longstreet's  corps — Desperate  struggle 
— Retreat  of  the  Union  forces — Gallant  stand  of  Reno's 
Division — Rebel  cunning — General  retreat — Loss  of  knap 
sacks,  &c. — List  of  casualties — Arrival  at  Centreville. 

AT  daylight  on  Friday,  the  29th,  the  regiment 
prepared  to  march  by  calling  in  companies  A,  D,  F 
and  I,  which  had  been  out  all  night  on  picket,  and 
before  sunrise  it  was  on  its  way  to  "Bull  Run," 
where  it  soon  arrived  amidst  a  greeting  of  solid 
shot,  shell,  and  railroad  iron  cut  into  lengths  of  fif 
teen  or  twenty  inches,  from  the  rebel  batteries 
masked  in  the  woods  along  the  Manassas  Railroad. 
The  regiment  was  immediately  formed  in  line  of 
battle,  with  bayonets  fixed,  and  lay  down  on  the 
crest  of  a  hill,  in  support  of  Durrell's  famous  bat- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.      211 

tery.  The  battle  was  now  raging  furiously.  The 
dying  and  wounded  were  being  carried  to  the  rear 
by  thousands ;  the  air  was  filled  with  the  shrieking 
and  exploding  shells,  the  ground  being  covered 
with  their  fragments,  and  with  the  dead,  dying 
and  wounded  soldiers. 

Durrell's  battery  labored  incessantly  in  its  duties, 
and  must  have  played  sad  havoc  in  the  rebel  ranks, 
for  it  appeared  to  be  a  special  target  for  about  six 
hours  to  all  the  rebel  batteries  within  reaching  dis 
tance,  during  which  time  Col.  Hartranft  served  in 
person  at  one  of  the  guns,  rendering  valuable  ser 
vices  in  keeping  the  gun  at  work.  Although  he 
exposed  his  entire  person  for  so  long  a  time,  yet  he 
would  not  let  one  of  his  men  raise  his  head  six 
inches  above  the  ground,  as  if  he  wanted  the  enemy 
to  think  that  the  battery  was  not  supported,  thereby 
inviting  a  charge  from  them.  Attempts  had  been 
made  to  flank  the  battery  on  the  left,  but  the  left 
wing  of  McDowell's  command  checkmated  those  at 
tempts,  while  Durrell  kept  dealing  rapid  doses  of  all 
kinds  of  missiles  of  death  into  the  multitudinous 
ranks  of  the  enemy,  under  the  command  of  Gen. 
James  Longstreet,  who  seemed  fated  to  contend  with 
the  9th  Army  Corps  in  all  his  future  battles,  for  it 
met  him  at  Bull  Run,  at  Chantilly,  South  Moun 
tain,  Antietam,  atLoudon,  Campbell's  Station,  Knox- 
ville,  Blame's  Cross  Roads,  Spottsylvania,  Cold 
Harbor,  Ream's  Station,  Yellow  Tavern,  and  almost 
anywhere  along  the  line  at  Petersburg. 

The  battle  raged  all  day  and  on  to  midnight. 
Before  the  51st  went  into  battle  the  men  divested 
themselves  of  all  incumbrances,  such  as  knapsacks, 
blankets,  &c.,  and  piled  them  up  and  left  them  under 


212     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

the  guard  of  two  men  from  each  company.  Pocket- 
books  with  their  contents,  pistols,  and  all  small 
articles  of  value  were  given  by  the  men  to  the 
guards  for  safe  keeping. 

At  night  four  companies,  A,  D,  F  and  I,  were 
again  sent  out  on  picket  under  the  command  of  Lieut. 
Col.  Bell.  The  remainder  of  the  regiment,  under 
Col.  Hartranft,  remained  in  support  of  the  battery 
during  the  night.  After  the  pickets  were  posted  it 
was  found  that  the  woods  in  which  they  were  was 
full  of  dead,  dying  and  wounded  rebels,  lying  side 
by  side  with  the  same  unfortunates  of  the  Union 
army.  Their  cries  and  groans  in  the  still  hours  of 
night  were  heartrending  in  the  ears  of  the  humane. 
The  numerous  corpses  that  strewed  the  woods,  both 
of  Federal  and  rebel  soldiers,  spoke  too  plainly  of 
the  terrible  conflict  that  had  been  going  on  all  day 
in  that  desolated  place.  Nothing  had  been  gained 
by  either  side  during  the  whole  day's  fighting. 

On  Saturday  morning,  August  30,  at  daybreak, 
Capt.  Schall,  with  two  or  three  of  his  men,  had  in 
tended  to  penetrate  the  woods  for  the  purpose  of 
discovering  the  position  and  closeness  of  the  rebel 
lines,  but  Lieut.  Jos.  K.  Bolton,  of  Co.  A,  had  al 
ready  taken  such  steps,  and  had  proceeded  about 
fifty  yards  further  into  the  woods  when  Capt.  Schall 
started  ;  the  latter  only  got  fairly  into  his  search  be^ 
lore  a  volley  of  musketry  was  fired  at  Lieut.  Bolton, 
who  escaped  unharmed,  and  the  balls  flying  over 
Capt.  Schall,  at  first  gave  the  impression  that  he  had 
the  credit  of  opening  the  second  day's  fight;  but  Co. 
A  was  on  the  extreme  left  of  the  line  and  Co.  I  on 
the  right,  and  Lieut.  Bolton  had  attracted  the  atten 
tion  of  the  rebel  pickets  at  the  same  time  that  Capt. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      213 

Schall  did.  The  shots  that  were  fired,  however, 
brought  on  the  day's  work  of  slaughter,  and  from 
that  moment  up  to  9  o'clock  of  Saturday  night,  the 
30th,  the  roar  of  artillery  and  the  rattle  of  musketry 
were  beyond  the  power  of  description.  It  was 
sublime  to  witness,  but  awful  to  participate  in. 

On  the  rebels  beginning  the  attack,  the  four  com 
panies  under  Lieut.-Col.  Bell  rallied  on  the  reserve, 
which  was  only  about  fifteen  yards  in  the  rear  of 
their  posts.  Lieut.-Col.  Bell  immediately  formed 
the  four  companies  in  line  of  battle  and  held  his  po 
sition  for  over  an  hour,  when  he  fell  back  to  the 
main  line  and  rejoined  the  remainder  of  the  regi 
ment  that  was  still  in  support  of  Durrell's  battery. 

The  men  now  began  to  suffer  again  for  rations, 
and  what  little  there  was  among  the  men  was  en 
tirely  consumed  for  a  breakfast,  yet  notwithstanding 
losing  so  much  sleep,  they  entered  upon  their  duties 
with  true  soldierly  cheerfulness,  and  fought,  aye 
equalled  only  by  those  who  fought  best,  but  towards 
noon  it  was  becoming  evident  that  the  enemy  was 
in  far  superior  numbers  to  the  Union  forces,  as  the 
woods  and  plains  were  swarming  with  the  rebel 
soldiery,  while  our  own  forces  were  being  greatly 
reduced  by  "  shirkers"  and  other  causes.  Towards 
the  middle  of  the  afternoon  the  confusion  became 
almost  as  great  as  it  did  at  the  first  Bull  Eun  battle, 
colors  of  different  regiments  kept  continually  coming 
out  of  battle,  supported  by  some  three  or  four  men 
only,  who  when  questioned  as  to  where  was  their 
regiments,  they  invariably  replied,  "  it's  all  cut  up, 
this  is  all  that  is  left  of  us,"  but  in  a  few  days  after 
the  battle  was  over  it  was  found  that  those  same 
colors  could  boast  of  two  or  three  hundred  sup- 


214     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

porters,  but  such  was  the  confusion  that  each  man 
seemed  to  "  go  it  on  his  own  hook "  and  relieved 
himself  when  it  was  getting  too  hot. 

About  4  P.  M.  the  Union  army  began  its  retreat 
to  Washington.  The  roads  had  been  lined  all  day 
with  skulkers  and  wounded.  But  of  this  retreat 
Reno's  division  was  in  total  ignorance.  And  at  the 
commencement  Gen.  McDowell  ordered  Gen.  Reno  to 
take  his  division  into  battle  at  the  left  of  the  hospital, 
and  to  occupy  a  position  that  would  cover  the  re 
treat,  and  adding  at  the  same  time,  "you  and  your 
command  will  be  captured,  but  it  can't  be  helped  as 
the  army  must  be  saved."  Gen.  Reno  couldn't  see 
capture,  and  replied  in  true  Yankee  style,  "  I  guess 
not  captured."  Col.  Hartranft  took  his  regiment  in 
"left  in  front,"  at  a  double  quick,  and  "by  files  on 
your  left  into  line,"  he  had  his  regiment  in  line  of 
battle  inside  of  two  minutes  from  the  time  the  order 
was  given  to  him  to  take  his  regiment  in,  and  as 
each  file  came  into  its  place  it  fired  by  files  until  the 
whole  regiment  had  got  "  in  line,"  when  he  gave 
the  command  "let  them  have  it  now,  boys,''  and 
from  4  P.  M.  until  9  P.  M.  did  the  "boys  let  them 
have  it."  The  regiment  kept  up  an  incessant  fire 
during  the  whole  five  hours.  The  rebel  army  about 
noon  began  to  turn  the  left  wing  of  Pope's  army, 
and  had  driven  it  back  for  more  than  a  mile,  nearly 
doubling  it  up,  and  soon  after  it  began  its  retreat, 
leaving  the  left  or  rear  entirely  unprotected  until 
Reno's  division  filled  up  the  void,  which  would  have 
proved  fatal  to  a  large  portion  of  the  army  had 
Reno  been  less  prompt  in  getting  his  command  into 
position,  but  he  saw  the  danger  and  strove  to  avert 
it.  Immediately  in  the  rear  of  Cos.  A,  F,  and  D,  was 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  215 

posted  a  battery  of  four  heavy  guns,  distant  from 
the  men  about  twenty-five  feet.  This  battery  was 
unable  to  get  away  when  the  other  troops  left,  but 
now  finding  itself  supported  by  a  fresh  regiment  it 
opened  on  the  enemy  all  of  its  guns  with  the  fury  of 
demons.  The  enemy  were  in  the  woods  from  where 
the  "  Black  Horse  cavalry  "  made  their  ever  to  be 
remembered  charge  on  the  Union  troops  at  the  first 
battle  of  Bull  Run,  and  were  but  a  few  yards  off 
from  Reno's  division,  separated  only  by  a  ravine  that 
extended  the  length  of  the  whole  line  of  battle. 
After  the  first  shots  were  fired  by  the  battery,  Capt. 
Win.  J.  Bolton  saw  that  his  company  was  in  great 
danger  of  being  torn  to  pieces  by  the  discharge  of 
grape  and  canister,  which  passed  only  a  few  inches 
over  his  men's  heads.  Notice  was  given  to  Col. 
Hartranft,  who  soon  had  the  danger  obviated  by  a 
change  in  the  battery's  position. 

After  dark,  a  shell  was  thrown  into  the  woods 
that  set  it  on  fire — at  least,  it  was  supposed  to  be  the 
effect  of  the  shell.  The  firing  had  ceased  all  along 
the  line  except  just  in  this  one  place;  and  as  the 
grape  rattled  against  the  trees  in  the  woods,  the 
sounds  were  heard  by  all  with  perfect  awe.  Reader ! 
were  you  there  that  night  ?  If  so,  you  do  not  for 
get  those  awful  thugs  as  each  gun  sent  its  contents 
in  the  woods  to  search  for  the  wily  foe.  And  if  you 
were  not,  I  am  at  a  loss  to  make  you  comprehend 
its  awfulness. 

A  short  time  after,  it  began  to  get  dark,  and  while 
the  battery  was  using  grape,  a  voice  was  heard  in 
the  woods,  calling,  "  Pennsylvania  boys !  for  God's 
sake  cease  firing  and  come  and  get  me  out  of  this  !" 
The  exclamations  continued  for  a  long  time,  and 


216     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

finally  ceased.  Col.  Hartranft's  attention  was  di 
rected  to  the  sound,  and  several  of  the  men  vol 
unteered  to  go  into  the  woods  to  bring  the  supposed 
wounded  Union  soldier  into  our  lines ;  in  fact,  one 
man,  Hugh  McGill,  had  started  for  the  benevolent 
object,  and  had  reached  the  bottom  of  the  ravine, 
when  he  was  discovered  by  Col.  Hartranft  and 
ordered  back  to  his  company.  The  firing  did  not 
entirely  cease,  but  the  voice  still  kept  on  calling,  in 
the  most  piteous  tones,  for  aid  and  rescue.  The 
sympathy  of  nearly  the  whole  regiment  was  enlisted 
in  the  poor  fellow's  favor ;  but  Col.  Hartranft  was 
not  to  be  caught  napping,  and  the  only  sympathy  he 
expressed  was  in  his  command  "  To  pour  it  into 
them  !"  which  both  artillery  and  infantry  did  to 
their  utmost  capacity ;  and  the  voice  ceased  to  call 
for  any  more  aid.  Shortly  after  the  voice  ceased, 
Capt.  Bolton  discovered  in  the  darkness  a  large  body 
of  something  moving  up  the  ravine,  at  a  very  slow 
and  cautious  pace.  The  firing  ceased  for  a  moment, 
and  he  and  his  first  lieutenant,  Joseph  K.  Bolton, 
went  out  a  few  paces  in  front,  and  soon  returned 
with  the  information  that  the  rebels  were  sneaking 
up  to  them.  The  regiment  fired  "  right  oblique," 
and  the  battery  opened  at  the  same  time  with  grape, 
canister,  and  shrapnel,  the  guns  being  double-shot 
ted.  The  ravine  was  soon  raked  clean  of  everything 
like  an  enemy,  for  they  quickly  scampered  back  to 
their  lines.  This  affair  revealed  the  fact  that  the 
voice  for  aid  was  only  a  stool-pigeon  trick  of  the 
enemy  to  get  the  firing  to  cease,  that,  while  our  men 
would  be  going  to  render  aid  to  the  wounded  man, 
they  could  at  the  same  time  take  advantage  of  the 
calm  and  swing  around,  and  perhaps  capture  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      217 

whole  division ;  but  Col.  Hartranft  was  a  little  too 
sharp  for  any  of  their  tricks. 

At  9  o'clock  at  night,  the  entire  Union  army 
had  retreated  from  the  battle-field  with  the  excep 
tion  of  Reno's  division ;  and  as  the  enemy  had  not 
fired  a  shot  for  a  considerable  time,  it  was  thought 
that  they  had  either  left  or  changed  their  position. 
Consequently,  Gen.  Reno  ordered  his  command  to 
leave  theirs,  and  move  off'  the  battle-ground  as 
quietly  as  possible. 

Just  as  the  51st  P.  "V.  was  starting,  the  com 
mander  of  the  battery  ran  up  to  Col.  Hartranft  and 
shook  him  cordiallv  by  the  hand,  exclaiming,  at  the 
same  time,  "  Colonel,  you  have  saved  my  battery  !" 
This  was  the  truth. 

In  leaving  the  field,  it  was  not  deemed  prudent 
to  go  after  the  knapsacks,  as  it  was  known  that  the 
enemy  obtained  possession  of  that  portion  of  the 
field  long  before  night.  The  rebel  cavalry  had 
made  a  dash  and  captured  the  guards  that  had  been 
left  in  charge  of  them,  and  plundered  the  knapsacks 
of  all  the  contents  that  were  of  any  value ;  conse 
quently  the  51st  P.  Y.  lost  everything  it  possessed 
excepting  what  the  men  had  on  their  persons.  The 
loss  of  the  regiment  in  killed,  wounded,  and  miss 
ing  was  small  .*  By  official  report,  total  loss,  ten. 

*  Co.  A.  Corporal  Jesse  Johnson,  privates  Lewis  F.  Key- 
ser,  Harvey  Pinch,  and  Franklin  R.  Lindley,  taken  prisoenrs. 

Co.  D.  Corporal  William  W.  Smith,  and  private  Dennis 
O'Neil,  wounded. 

Co.  F.     Private  Thomas  Deiner,  wounded. 

Co.  G.     Private  John  Miller,  wounded. 

Co.  H.  Privates  Henry  J.  Warner  and  Jewett  S.  Harding, 
wounded,  Harding  being  taken  prisoner. 

Co.  I.  Privates  Thomas  Troy  and  Henry  Derr  taken 
prisoners. 

Co.  K.     Private  James  C.  Gallagher,  missing. 


218     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

The  51st  reached  Centreville  on  Sunday  morn 
ing,  the  31st,  a  little  before  daylight,  in  a  piercing 
cold  rain,  which  had  been  falling  all  night.  The 
men  were  shivering  with  cold,  in  their  wet  clothing, 
from  having  to  ford  a  stream  neck-deep  during  the 
retreat.  Their  situation  was  to  be  pitied,  for  their 
sufferings  were  of  coldness,  wet,  hunger,  and  fatigue, 
from  being  on  the  march  all  the  night  before,  and 
having  had  no  sleep  for  two  nights  previous  to  that. 
Their  sufferings  could  not  be  half  told  if  it  were  at 
tempted. 


CHAPTBK    XVI. 

"Drawing  clothing" — On  the  march — A  surprise — Battle  of 
Chantilly — Death  of  Gen'ls  Kearney  and  Stevens — Fairfax — 
Cloud's  Mills — Washington — Burning  of  Middleton — Battle 
of  South  Mountain — Terrible  carnage — An  ambuscade — 
Death  of  Gen.  Eeno— Sufferings  of  the  wounded — Explosive 
cartridges — Defeat  of  the  enemy. 

ON  arriving  at  Centreville  the  men  sought  such 
shelter  from  the  cold  rain  as  could  best  be  found  in 
the  fortifications  at  that  place.  A  small  lot  of 
clothing  was  found  stored  away  in  boxes  belonging 
to  a  German  regiment,  and  it  was  eagerly  seized  by 
the  men  and  applied  to  their  own  immediate  use. 
Soon  after  the  appropriation,  the  Germans  came 
for  their  clothes,  and  their  woful  looking  coun 
tenances  bespoke  the  sad  disappointment  they  felt 
at  their  loss,  and  their  "  Cod  fer  tarns  "  were  frequent 
and  loud.  The  Germans  were  not  as  bad  off'  for 
comforts  after  their  losses  as  the  men  of  the  51st 
were  after  their  acquisitions,  for  while  the  former 
had  their  tents  to  go  to,  with  plenty  to  eat,  the  latter 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      219 

had  to  lie  out  in  the  cold  rain  with  wet  clothing, 
without  fire  and  without  food. 

While  lying  at  Centreville,  a  rumor  became  rife 
that  our  forces  were  being  reinforced  by  50,000 
more  fresh  troops,  and  that  an  "  about  face "  had 
been  ordered  for  the  purpose  of  an  advance  "  on  to 
Richmond."  Although  the  rumor  was  believed  by 
many  to  be  false,  still  a  large  portion  of  the  army 
believed  it  true,  and  expressed  their  willingness  to 
push  the  thing  through,  and  end  the  war  as  soon  as 
possible. 

On  Monday,  September  1st,  1862,  the  51st  P.  V. 
moved  back  of  Centreville  to  go  into  camp,  but  as 
the  men  began  to  prepare  for  that  purpose,  they 
were  ordered  to  make  another  move  for  a  similar 
design,  and,  when  in  the  act  of  erecting  rude  shel 
tering,  it  was  for  the  third  time  ordered  to  another 
place.  Becoming  disgusted  at  what  the  men  con 
ceived  to  be  the  whimsical  caprices  of  the  com 
manding  officers,  they  made  no  further  attempts  to 
protect  themselves  from  the  weather. 

At  3  P.  M.,  the  51st  was  ordered  to  proceed  to 
Fairfax  Court-house,  and  started  in  ten  minutes 
after  receiving  its  orders.  At  4  p.  M.,  very  unex 
pectedly  it  met  the  enemy  at  Chantilly.  The  21st 
Massachusetts  being  on  the  advance  it  encountered 
the  enemy  first,  under  very  peculiar  circumstances. 
A  brigade  of  rebel  infantry  was  filing  out  of  a 
neighboring  woods  into  the  Fairfax  road,  just  as 
Col.  Clark,  with  his  21st  Massachusetts  regiment, 
was  passing  the  point  into  which  the  enemy  were 
filing ;  the  two  colonels  saluted  each  other,  as  each 
officer  thought  they  both  were  of  the  one  army,  and 
as  the  men  of  the  21st  Massachusetts  wore  overcoats 


220     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

a  good  deal  of  the  color  of  the  rebels  the  delusion 
was  complete.  The  two  colonels  rode  along  together 
for  a  few  yards,  when  the  rebel  colonel  asked  Col. 
Clark,  "What's  your  regiment,  colonel?"  Col. 
Clark  replied,  "Its  the  21st  Massachusetts."  "My 
regiment  is  the  Mississippi,  and  we  are  ene 
mies,"  replied  the  rebel  colonel,  and  with  his  men 
made  a  fierce  onslaught  on  the  21st  Massachusetts, 
capturing  Col.  Clark  and  a  number  of  his  men.  The 
51st  P.  Y.  and  the  51st  New  York,  were  about  a  half 
a  mile  in  the  rear  accompanied  by  Durrell's  battery. 
The  battle  opened  as  if  by  magic,  the  battery  got  a 
position  in  a  field  close  to  the  road,  and  the  51st  was 
ordered  to  its  support.  By  this  time  the  entire 
armies  of  both  sides  that  were  in  the  vicinity  of 
Chantilly,  were  hotly  engaged.  Generals  Kearney 
and  Stevens'  commands  had  attacked  the  enemy  on 
the  latter's  own  choice  of  ground,  viz.,  a  large  corn 
field  begirted  by  a  strip  of  woods,  but  so  hotly  was 
the  possession  of  the  cornfield  contested  for,  that 
Durrell's  battery  durst  not  fire  a  gun  for  fear  of 
killing  more  of  Stevens'  and  Kearney's  men  than  it 
would  of  the  enemy,  but  just  as  Kearney  had  suc 
ceeded  in  driving,  the  rebels  from  their  position,  an 
ill-fated  bullet  pierced  the  hero,  and  he  died  without 
a  struggle — poor  Stevens  fell  also,  and  his  lifeless 
body  was  carried  through  the  51st's  line  to  the  rear. 
Night  closed  in. with  a  piercing  cold  and  drenching 
rain,  but  the  battle  raged  violently  until  9  o'clock  at 
night,  when  the  almost  Egpytian  darkness  put  a  stop 
to  any  further  slaughter.  Pickets  were  put  out,  a 
new  style  of  posting  them  being  used  that  was  not 
altogether  military  on  account  of  its  risk  and  unre 
liability.  The  rebels  had  posted  their  pickets  first 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  221 

and  close  up  to  the  Dlst'smain  line,  but  the  darkness 
prevented  any  one  from  being  seen  at  a  distance  of 
three  feet.  The  51st  posted  its  pickets  between  the 
rebels'  pickets  and  their  -main  line,  thus  rendering 
their  position  one  of  extreme  danger.  Shortly  after 
the  pickets  were  posted  a  rebel  adjutant  visited  a  post 
belonging  to  Co.  B's,  51st  P.  V.,  but  thinking  they 
were  his  own  men  had  very  little  to  say  to  them. 
But  not  so  with  Co.  B's  men,  they  asked  him  what 
regiment  he  belonged  to,  he  told  them,  the  3d  Louisi 
ana,  "  then  by  *  *  *  you're  my  prisoner,  for  mine  is 
the  51st  Pennsylvania,"  replied  Private  John  Seibert. 
The  adjutant  wanted  an  explanation,  but  John  bad 
none  for  him,  and  brought  his  shoulder-strapship  in 
and  turned  him  over  to  Lieut.-Col.  Bell.  The  posi 
tion  of  the  pickets  was  now  understood,  and  after 
capturing  a  couple  posts  of  rebels,  ours  were  quietly 
put  in  a  safer  place.  The  regiment  laid  on  its 
arms  until  4  A.  M.  of  the  2d,  when  it  again  started 
for  Fairfax.  The  regiment  suffered  this  night  from 
cold  more  than  any  time  since  it  had  been  in  the 
army.  Cold  chilling  rain  fell  during  the  whole 
night,  the  men  being  without  a  gum  or  even  a  painted 
blanket,  and  many  without  any  shirt  at  all,  only 
their  blouse  and  pants  on,  and  lying  all  night  in  wet 
grass  that  was  not  less  than  two  feet  and  a  half  high. 
Their  condition  can  safely  be  compared  to  that  of  a 
man  being  compelled  to  stand  in  cold  water  up  to  his 
chin  for  eight  hours  in  succession. 

Arriving  at  Fairfax  at  sunrise  of  the  2d,  the  regi 
ment  drew  a  day's  rations  and  cooked  its  breakfast, 
afterwards  moving  to  a  position  on  the  top  of  a  hill 
close  to 'the  town.  In  the  afternoon,  it  again  was  on 
its  way  to  Cloud's  Mill,  where  it  went  into  camp 


222     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

under  the  guns  of  Fort  Ellsworth,  near  Alexan 
dria,  Va. 

On  "Wednesday  the  3d,  the  men  were  enabled  to 
get  a  little  more  to  eat,  as  the  sutler  of  the  fort 
had  a  large  stock  on  hand,  and  the  men  spent  their 
money  as  freely  as  water. 

On  the  4th,  the  men  drew  clothing  in  lieu  of  what 
they  lost  at  Bull  Bun,  but  no  rations,  and  why  it 
was  that  a  retreating  and  famished  army  so  close  to 
Washington  could  not  get  any,  is  a  question  that 
only  the  Commissary-General  of  the  United  States 
Army  at  Washington,  could  answer.  While  the 
regiment  was  lying  here,  it  received  quite  an 
acquisition  to  its  ranks  by  the  arrival  of  a  large 
squad  of  new  recruits  from  Carnp  Curtin. 

At  9  P.  M.  the  51st  again  struck  tents  and  started 
for  Washington,  where  it  arrived  at  4  o'clock  in  the 
morning  of  the  5th,  and  halted  in  a  woods  a  short 
distance  from  the  city,  where  it  bivouacked  until 
10  A.  M.  of  the  7th.  While  at  Washington,  Gen. 
Burnside  visited  the  regiment,  and  received  the  usual 
cheers  from  the  men.  It  was  also  visited  by  a  large 
number  of  its  friends  from  home,  among  whom  were 
Dr.  Holstein  and  Mrs.  Cadwalader  Evans,  from 
Bridgeport,  Pa.  They  found  a  few  of  their  inti 
mate  friends  sick,  and  distributed  their  delicacies  to 
them  with  an  unsparing  hand.  The  writer  of  this, 
although  an  entire  stranger  to  them,  can  vouch  with 
gratitude  for  their  kindness.  Having  been  sick  for 
several  days,  although  I  did  not  lose  a  minute's 
duty,  yet  I  could  not  eat  such  food  as  was  obtained. 
I  received  from  Dr.  H.  a  bottle  of  tomatoes  that  put 
new  life  in  me,  and  strengthened  me  greatly  for  the 
next  march.  I  merely  mention  this  circumstance  to 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      223 

contradict  the  false  impression  that  only  a  favored 
few  ever  got  anything  from  the  philanthropic. 

On  the  7th,  at  10  A.  M.,  the  regiment  left  Wash 
ington,  D.  C.,  marched  thirteen  miles,  and  went  into 
quarters  for  the  night  at  the  cross-roads  on  the  turn 
pike  ;  left  again  the  next  morning  at  6  o'clock, 
marched  a  couple  of  miles,  and  then  laid  over  until 
next  day,  when,  at  6  A.  M.  (the  9th),  the  regiment 
left  for  Brookville,  where  it  arrived  at  noon,  making 
thirteen  miles  in  six  hours.  In  passing  through  this 
section  of  country  the  troops  were  received  with 
strong  marks  of  kindness.  Liquors,  lemonade, 
cakes,  bread,  pies  and  fruits  were  distributed  freely 
to  the  troops  by  the  citizens  of  Maryland.  While 
in  camp  at  Brookville  the  men  had  another  chance 
to  wash  their  clothing  and  for  a  bath,  a  fine  stream 
of  water  passing  through  the  camp.  Rations  were 
also  served,  for  once  in  thirty  days,  in  abundance. 
Fruit  being  in  great  plenty  and  fully  ripe,  the  men 
did  ample  justice  to  it.  The  regiment  remained  at 
Brookville  until  7  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  Thurs 
day,  the  llth,  then  passed  through  the  town  of  Unity 
and  encamped  for  the  night  near  Damascus,  Md. 

On  the  morning  of  the  12th  a  heavy  rain  began 
to  fall  and  continued  until  noon,  making  the  march 
ing  painfully  laborious.  The  roads  became  so  slip 
pery  that  it  was  with  difficulty  that  the  men  could 
keep  on  their  feet. 

On  the  13th  the  regiment  crossed  the  Monocacy 
and  laid  over  for  the  night  in  the  vicinity  of  Fred 
erick  City.  The  army  was  now  under  the  command 
of  Gen.  McClellan,  who  had  come  up  with  Lee's 
forces  at  Frederick  City  and  given  him  battle,  head 
ing  off'  the  rebels  from  going  any  further  north. 


224     HISTOKY   OF  THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

The  battle  was  a  pretty  sharp  contest,  in  which  the 
enemy  appeared  to  get  the  worst  of  it,  for  he  began 
to  fall  back  on  Middleton,  toward  South  Mountain, 
where  he  made  a  stand  on  Sunday,  September  14th, 
1862.  A  sharp  contest  ensued  at  Middleton  be 
tween  the  two  armies,  in  which  the  rebels  set  fire  to 
a  mill  and  dwelling  houses  in  the  town,  consuming 
everything,  after  which  they  took  up  their  position 
on  South  Mountain.  At  2  o'clock  p.  M.  the  51st  be 
gan  to  ascend  the  mountain,  and  by  3  o'clock  it  had 
taken  its  position  directly  in  front  of  the  guns  of 
Durrell's  battery.  The  men  were  ordered  to  lie 
down,  which  was  highly  necessary,  for  each  gun 
belched  forth  its  contents  over  the  prostrate  men  of 
the  51st  P.  V.,  who  were  in  support  of  that  battery. 
The  cannonading  was  terrific,  as  Durrell  and  the 
rebel  batteries  were  having  a  regular  artillery  duel, 
which  lasted  until  nearly  sundown,  when  it  ceased 
by  Durrell  silencing  the  enemy's  guns,  after  which, 
as  the  rebels,  got  the  worst  of  it,  they  had  to  limber 
up  and  leave  their  position.  The  51st  was  then  or 
dered  further  up  the  road,  toward  the  summit  of  the 
mountain.  As  it  was  going  along  a  by-road  it 
passed  a  heap  of  rebel  dead,  forty-seven  bodies, 
piled  up  in  a  space  of  thirty  by  ten  feet.  The  won 
der  was,  how  the  dead  got  there,  but  on  going  up  to 
the  top  of  the  mountain  another  pile  of  ninety-seven 
lay  piled  up  across  each  other,  and  the  ground  in 
the  vicinity  was  strewn  with  the  dead  of  the  17th 
Michigan,  telling  plainly  how  the  two  piles  of  rebel 
dead  came  to  be  there.  It  was  the  Ivth's  maiden 
fight;  they  had  only  joined  McClellan's  command 
two  days  previous,  and  it  was  less  than  two  weeks 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      225 

since  they  were  mustered  into  the  United  States  ser 
vice.     They  fought  like  tigers. 

The  51st,  along  with  the  other  part  of  the  brigade, 
was  in  a  small  field  of  about  three  acres,  on  the  left 
hand  side  of  the  road  in  going  to  the  top  of  the 
mountain,  and  as  it  was  supposed  that  the  enemy 
had  retreated,  Gen.  Reno  rode  up  to  Col.  Hartranft 
and  told  him  to  take  his  "  regiment  across  the  road 
into  that  other  field,  stack  arms,  and  let  the  men 
make  some  coffee."  Col.  H.  gave  the  command, 
"right  face;  forward  march,"  which  they  did  until 
they  got  to  the  corner  of  the  field,  where  the  bars 
were  down ;  then  going  to  the  right  of  the  regiment 
he  commanded,  '''file  right."  Four  companies,  A, 
F,  D  and  I,  and  part  of  the  color  company,  Co.  C, 
had  passed  into  the  field  on  the  right  of  the  road, 
when  a  most  murderous  fire  of  musketry  was  poured 
into  them  from  the  enemy,  who  was  concealed  in  a 
thicket  that  skirted  the  field,  only  about  twenty  or 
thirty  yards  distant  from  the  51st.  Notwithstanding 
the  suddenness  of  the  attack,  to  their  heroic  credit 
be  it  said,  not  a  man  quailed.  It  was  now  nearly  or 
quite  dark,  but  the  men  came  to  a  ''  front"  as  if  by 
impulse,  and  although  the  enemy's  position  could 
not  exactly  be  seen,  yet  their  whereabouts  could  be 
near  enough  told  by  the  blinding  flashes  of  their 
guns.  The  51st  poured  a  deadly  volley  into  them 
that  soon  cleared  the  skirt  of  woods  of  all  rebels. 
But  the  51st  P.  V.  did  not  suffer  from  the  enemy 
alone,  for  a  new  regiment,  the  35th  Mass.,  which  had 
only  joined  the  brigade  the  day  before,  was  in  the 
field  on  the  other  side  of  the  road  where  the  51st 
had  just  left,  and  as  the  enemy's  balls  passed  the 

51st  they  reached   the   35th  Mass.,  when  that  regi- 

11 


226      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

ment,  believing  they  were  the  attacked  party,  opened 
a  deadly  fire  in  the  direction  from  which  the  balls 
were  coming.  The  result  was  that  the  51st  was  in 
between  two  lines  of  musketry,  and  getting  shot 
down  like  dogs.  Had  not  the  51st  N.  Y.  interfered 
and  threatened  to  fire  on  the  35th  if  they  did  not 
cease  firing,  God  only  knows  when  the  slaughter 
would  have  ceased.  After  the  51st  had  driven  the 
enemy  out  of  ambush,  Col.  Hartranft  ordered  the 
regiment  out  into  the  road  again,  to  take  shelter  be 
hind  a  stone  wall  enclosing  the  field,  for  the  purpose 
of  using  it  as  a  breastwork.  After  the  regiment 
had  retired  beyond  the  wall,  Co.  A,  under  Capt. 
Bolton.  was  deployed  as  skirmishers,  and  skirmished 
in  the  dark  until  they  got  to  where  the  enemy  had 
lain  in  ambush.  The  ground  was  thickly  strewn 
with  the  dead,  dying  and  wounded  of  the  51st  P.  V.; 
but  by  midnight  all  had  been  collected,  and  the  dead 
were  laid  on  the  roadside  for  burial.  The  dying  and 
wounded  were  conveyed  to  the  hospital  to  receive 
immediate  attention,  but  the  poor  sufferers  did  not 
receive  it,  or  at  least  not  until  it  was  too  late  to  be  of 
any  service;  vide  Lieut.  Samuel  Fair,  of  Co.  D.; 
also,  Private  E.  Lewis  Davis,  of  Co.  I,  who  was  at 
the  hospital  four  days  before  his  wounds  were  at 
tended  to,  and  died  on  the  fifth  day.  Several  others 
were  neglected  at  the  hospitals  in  the  same  way,  and 
when  the  relatives  or  friends  of  the  wounded  men 
would  remonstrate  against  such  heartless  delay,  the 
surgeons  would  throw  themselves  on  their  dignity, 
and  order  the  "busy bodies"  to  leave. 

As  Gen.  Reno,  who  commanded  the  9th  Army 
Corps,  was  going  back  to  his  quarters  after  telling 
Col.  Hartranft  to  take  the  51st  into  the  field  to  stack 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      227 

arms  and  make  coffee,  the  first  volley  fired  by  the 
ambuscade  wounded  him  mortally  in  the  groin  and 
thigh.  His  death  soon  followed ;  but  previous  to 
his  death  Gen.  Samuel  Sturgis,  who  was  his  bosom 
friend,  visited  him  while  his  wounds  were  being 
dressed,  and  asked  him,  ':Is  it  anything  serious, 
Jesse?"  Reno's  reply  was,  "Sam,  it's  all  up  with 
me;"  and  being  conscious  of  his  near  dissolution, 
he,  like  a  pure,  noble  and  true  hero,  reconciled  him 
self  to  his  fate,  and  soon  breathed  his  last.  Thus 
passed  away  one  of  the  army's  brightest  stars,  as  a 
gentleman,  a  friend  and  a  soldier.  His  bravery  had 
never  been  doubted,  for  it  was  of  that  cool,  delib 
erate,  but  cautious  character,  that  inspires  an  army 
to  follow  into  the  very  jaws  of  death.  Gen.  J.  D. 
Cox  was  put  in  command  of  Reno's  corps,  but  was 
with  it  such  a  short  time  that  the  men  had  little  or 
no  opportunity  to  judge  of  his  fighting  qualities,  as 
that,  and  that  only,  was  the  standard  by  which  they 
valued  an  officer.  He  having  been  sent  West  in 
October,  1862,  Gen.  0.  B.  Wilcox  succeeded  him  in 
the  command  of  the  9th  Corps. 

All  that  night,  after  falling  back  to  the  stone  wall, 
the  regiment  remained  on  their  arms,  the  51st  1ST.  Y. 
doing  picketing  on  the  left  of  the  51st  P.  V.  The 
enemy  kept  up  an  incessant  fire  all  night,  by  which 
not  less  than  thirty  men  of  the  51st  P.  V.  were  pain 
fully  wounded,  though  not  seriously,  by  the  explo 
sions  of  copper  metallic  cartridges  used  by  the 
enemy.  They  exploded  with  a  report  about  as  loud 
as  a  pocket  pistol,  and  could  inflict  a  number  of  ag 
gravating  wounds  on  a  single  soldier  at  each  explo 
sion.  The  copper  being  very  thin,  the  pieces  could 
not  penetrate  deep  into  the  flesh,  bat  merely  buried 


228     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

themselves  beneath  the  skin.  One  cartridge  had 
wounded  Private  Hugh  Brown  in  no  less  than 
twenty-four  places,  and  a  large  number  of  others 
with  nearly  as  many ;  but  in  a  few  weeks  the  poison 
ous  metal,  through  festering,  would  work  its  way 
out  of  the  skin  and  leave  a  bluish  mark,  as  if  punc 
tured  with  Indian  or  indelible  ink.  Between  the 
extreme  chilliness  of  the  night  and  the  constant  ex 
plosions  of  the  copper  cartridges  of  the  enemy,  the 
men  and  officers  spent  a  wretched',  supperless  night,  for 
no  fires  could  be  made  either  to  warm  or  cook  by  ;  but 
morning  dawned  as  a  most  welcome  deliverer  from 
cold  and  the  enemy's  firing,  for  just  at  daybreak  the 
enemy  ceased  firing  and  "  skedaddled.''  Skirmish 
ers  were  sent  out  by  orders,  and  a  goodly  number 
went  "  on  their  own  hook,"  and  succeeded  in  cap 
turing  a  large  number  of  rebels,  some  of  whom 
stoutly  refused  to  surrender  until  they  heard  the 
sharp  click  of  the  cocking  of  the  musket,  which 
plainly  told  them  they  must  soon  decide  whether  to 
"give  up''  or  die.  They  chose  the  former  as  the 
most  agreeable  to  their  feelings.* 

Their  haversacks  proved  how  proficient  the  rebels 

*  OFFICIAL  REPORT  OF  CASUALTIES. — Co.  A. — Corporals 
John  H.  Collision,  Osmon  Ortlip,  Benjamin  Goodwin,  Daniel 
Stout  and  Joseph  White;  Privates  Isaac  E.  Fillman,  Charles 
Fix,  John  Shade  and  Benjamin  D.  Jones,  wounded. 

Co.  C. — Corporal  Simon  P.  Emery  ;  Privates  John  Hal- 
lowell,  William  H.  Lath,  George  Mercer,  William  Munshower 
and  Charles  Rodesbaugh,  wounded. 

Co.  D. — Private  Samuel  Kay,  killed.  Lieut.  Samuel  Fair 
and  Privates  Owen  McConnell  and  John  Richards,  wounded. 

Co.  F. — Sergeant  Jacob  W.  Reed,  wounded. 

Co.  H. — Private  Nathaniel  Snyder,  killed.  Privates 
John  E.  Leamon,  Daniel  S.  Miller  and  Robert  W.  Passell, 
wounded. 

Co.  I. — Sergeant  Thomas  T.  Schoch  and  Privates  William  J. 
Anderson  and  Zachariah  Campbell,  killed.  Privates  E.  Lewis 
Davis,  R.  Clarkson  Davis  and  Hugh  Brown,  wounded. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      229 

were  in  foraging  while  in  Maryland,  for  they  were 
all  well  filled  with  fresh  baked  iDiscuits  and  rolls. 
How  it  was  that  the  Northern  press  kept  continu 
ally  howling  that  the  rebels  were  nearly  starved 
out,  and  that  the  Union  soldiers  always  had  plenty 
to  eat,  is  a  mystery  to  all  except  themselves,  for.  the 
contrary  was  at  all  times  proven  by  the  condition  of 
the  haversacks,  when  compared,  on  every  battle 
field.  The  haversacks  of  the  Union  soldiers  might 
contain  a  meagre  supply  of  coffee  and  sugar,  but 
seldom  anything  else  eatable,  while  those  of  the  dead 
or  captured  rebels  were  full  of  bread,  rolls,  biscuits 
and  cakes.  This  will  apply  to  all  times,  excepting 
the  last  few  weeks  of  the  expiring  confederacy,  when 
the  Union  troops  had  all  they  needed  and  the  rebels 
a  scanty  supply.  Many  famished  Union  soldiers 
have  regaled  themselves  on  the  contents  of  a  dead 
rebel's  haversack — the  writer  of  this  for  one. 


CHAPTEE     XVII. 

The  rebels  retreating — Opening  of  the  battle  of  Antietam — The 
struggle  at  the  bridge — Brilliant  charge  of  the  two  51sts — 
Bravery  of  Capt.  Allebaugh— The  bridge  stormed  and  taken 
— Flight  of  the  enemy — Heavy  losses  in  the  regiment — Death 
of  Lieut.  Col.  Bell— The  battle  renewed— Victory— Retreat 
of  the  rebels  southward — Promotion — Ferrero's  promise  to 
the  "Boys." 

THE  retreat  of  the  enemy  was  followed  up  with 
considerable  vigor  until  10  A.  M.  of  the  15th,  when 
the  regiment  halted  to  draw  rations  and  make  a  cup 
of  coffee.  It  went  into  camp  three  times  through 
the  remainder  of  the  day,  and  moved  as  often  before 


230     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

it  went  into  quarters  for  the  night,  which  was  on  the 
ground  where  the  enemy's  battery  had  its  position 
during  the  battle,  and  if  men  ever  slept  soundly  it 
was  on  this  night,  as  it  was  the  first  undisturbed  rest 
they  had  had  for  a  number  of  days  and  nights. 

T>he  regiment  remained  at  this  place  until  4  p.  M. 
of  the  16th,  as  it  was  now  on  the  reserve,  but  only 
to  get  a  little  rest  and  to  get  rations  cooked.  The 
rebels  were  retreating  but  very  slowly  ;  consequently, 
the  progress  of  the  Union  army  was  also  tardy;  but 
it  was  not  idle,  for  it  was  dealing  Lee  some  terrible 
blows,  as  the  dead  carcasses  of  horses  and  mules  of 
the  enemy,  lying  thickly  strewn  over  the  wide  space 
of  country  between  South  Mountain  and  Antietam, 
witnessed.  The  regiment  halted  in  a  stubble  field 
for  the  night,  one  mile  from  Antietam  bridge. 

Daybreak  of  the  17th  was  ushered  in  by  terrific 
cannonading  and  hard  musketry  fighting  on  both 
sides.  The  regiment  '• 'slung  knapsacks"  and  was 
once  more  on  its  way  to  battle.  When  near  Antie 
tam  bridge,  in  the  edge  of  a  cornfield,  Col.  Ferrero 
rode  up  and  ordered  "the  51st  to  forward."  Col. 
Hartranft  paid  no  attention  to  the  order,  for  it  did 
not  express  itself,  inasmuch  as  there  were  two  51sts 
there,  and  the  State  was  not  designated.  The  com 
mander  of  the  51st  N.  Y.  was  equally  as  particular 
as  Col.  Hartranft  was,  for  he  smiled  and  turned 
around  to  his  regiment,  and  paid  no  attention  to 
"the  51st  to  forward."  After  a  short  time  elapsed, 
Ferrero  came  back  in  a  towering  passion,  and  ex 
claimed,  "  Why  in  hell  don't  you  '  forward?"  Col. 
Hartranft,  who  knew  his  duty  quite  as  well  as  Col. 
Ferrero  did,  perhaps  considerably  better,  and  by  far 
a  braver  oincer,  replied,  "  Who  do  you  want  to  for 
ward?  "  Ferrero  replied,  "  the  51st  Pennsylvania." 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  231 

Col.  Hartranft  retorted  by  saying,  "  Why  don't  you 
say  what  you  mean  when  you  want  me  to  move  ? ' 

The  "51st  Pennsylvania"  did  move,  but  only  a 
very  short  distance,  when  it  halted  in  a  flat,  close  to 
a  barn  in  the  vicinity  of  Antietarn  bridge.  While 
at  this  halt  the  remainder  of  the  brigade  came  up 
and  halted  in  the  same  place. 

Lieut.  John  J.  Freedley,  E.  Q.  M.,  ventured  to  the 
top  of  a  hill  that  overlooked  the  rebel  batteriesrto 
gratify  his  curiosity  in  knowing  the  rebels'  position. 
He,  however,  was  satisfied,  for  he  had  only  been 
there  a  moment  when  a  shell  from  a  rebel  gun  ex 
ploded  a  little  above  him,  a  piece  of  which  struck 
him  on  the  shoulder,  inflicting  a  painful  wound.  He 
was  taken  to  the  rear  and  his  wound  attended  to. 

While  the  regiment  was  standing  at  this  halt,  the 
1st  brigade  had  made  three  ineffectual  charges  on 
Antietam  bridge,  having  been  repulsed  at  each 
charge  with  very  heavy  losses.  The  bridge  is  about 
four  miles  from  the  mouth  of  Antietam  Creek,  and 
spans  the  stream  at  the  foot  of  very  high  hills  on 
either  side.  The  one  occupied  by  the  rebels  might 
properly  be  called  a  bluff,  which  was  full  of  quarry 
holes  and  caverns  wherein  the  enemy  had  erected 
rude  but  strong  breastworks  that  overlooked  the 
bridge,  and  only  about  ten  yards  distant  from  that 
structure,  making  it  a  "  forlorn  hope  "  to  any  set  of 
men  attempting  to  take  the  bridge  by  assault. 

After  the  1st  brigade  had  made  its  third  charge, 
and  was  repulsed,  Gen.  Burnside,  seeing  the  vast 
importance  of  possessing  the  bridge,  dispatched  an 
orderly  to  Col.  Ferrero  to  u  take  the  two  ,51sts  out 
of  the  2d  brigade,"  and  let  them  try  it.  As  soon  as 
Ferrero  received  the  orders  he  vaulted  into  his  sad- 


232     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

die  and  commanded,  "  Attention,  second  brigade  !  " 
Quick  as  a  flash  the  brigade  was  "  in  line."  He 
then  rode  up  in  front  of  the  colors  of  the  51st  P. 
V.,  and  spoke  to  the  men  as  follows  :  "It  is  General 
Burnside's  special  request  that  the  two  51sts  take 
that  bridge.  Will  you  do  it  ?  "  The  request  was 
unlocked  for,  and  the  men  had  not  had  time  to 
think  of  it,  when  Corporal  Lewis  Patterson,  of  Co.  T, 
although  a  temperate  man,  exclaimed,  "  Will  you 
give  us  our  whiskey,  Colonel,  if  we  take  it  ?  "  Col. 
Ferrero  turned  suddenly  around  to  the  corporal  and 
replied,  "  Yes,  by  G — ,  you  shall  all  have  as  much 
as  you  want,  if  you  take  the  bridge.  I  don't  mean 
the  whole  brigade,  but  you  two  regiments  shall  have 
just  as  much  as  you  want,  if  it  is  in  the  commissary 
or  I  have  to  send  to  New  York  to  get  it,  and  pay 
for  it  out  of  my  own  private  purse  ;  that  is,  if  I  live 
to  see  you  through  it.  Will  you  take  it  ?  "  A 
unanimous  "  Yes,"  went  up  that  told  of  the  determi 
nation  of  the  men  to  take  the  bridge,  not  in  antici 
pation  of  the  ivluskey,  but  to  let  Gen.  Burnside 
know  that  his  confidence  in  the  twin  regiments  was 
not  misplaced  nor  should  be  abused.  After  a  few 
words  in  private  by  the  regimental  and  brigade 
commanders,  the  51st  P.  V.  led  the  advance.  March 
ing  "  by  the  flank  "  out  to  the  road  that  went  across 
the  bridge,  it  turned  its  back  to  the  bridge  and  pro 
ceeded  in  the  opposite  direction  from  the  objective 
point  up  the  road  to  the  top  of  the  hill.  All  this 
time  the  regiment  was  receiving  volley  after  volley 
of  musketry,  grape  and  shell  from  the  rebel  forces, 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  creek.  On  reaching  the 
top  of  the  hill  the  regiment  received  orders  "  As 
each  company  clears  the  fence  the  command  is  '  by 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEEES.  233 

company  into  line,' "  and  as  the  companies  "  filed 
left "  through  and  over  the  fence,  they  complied 
with  the  order  as  it  had  been  given.  After  the 
right  of  the  regiment  reached  a  clump  of  bushes  on 
the  top  of  the  hill,  the  command  to  "  charge  "  was 
given  by  Colonel  Hartranft.  In  this  field  and  a 
short  distance  from  the  base  of  the  hill  whereon  the 
assaulting  column  was,  a  stone  wall  ran  parallel 
with  the  creek,  and  close  to  its  edge,  ending  abruptly 
at  the  abutment  of  the  bridge.  As  the  regiments 
made  the  charge,  the  company  commanders  discov 
ered  that  it  would  be  an  impossibility  for  the  two 
regiments  to  charge  in  a  body  across  such  an  exceed 
ingly  narrow  structure;  they  therefore  changed 
their  course  from  the  entrance  of  the  bridge  to  the 
stone  wall  along  the  creek.  After  reaching  it  they 
laid  under  cover  of  the  wall  and  opened  a  terrific 
fire  of  musketry  on  the  enemy,  who  were  snugly 
ensconced  in  their  rude  but  substantial  breastworks, 
in  quarry  holes,  behind  high  ranks  of  cord-wood, 
logs,  stone  piles,  &c.,  making  it  rather  too  hot  a 
place  for  the  enemy  to  be  in,  and  too  close  for 
further  resistance.  They  began  to  withdraw  from 
their  position  by  twos  and  threes,  singly,  and  in 
whatever  way  they  could  with  the  most  safety  to 
themselves.  The  distance  now  between  the  oppos 
ing  forces  was  only  the  width  of  the  creek  and  a 
narrow  wagon  road  on  the  enemy's  side,  being  not 
over  twenty-five  yards.  This  was  the  nearest  that 
the  enemy  had  had  the  Yankees  to  them  during  the 
entire  day  of  the  Antietam  battle,  and  they  used 
every  exertion  known  in  military  parlance  to  rid 
themselves  of  their  now  troublesome  foe,  but  all  in 

vain.     The  51st  P.  V.  and  the  51st  New  York  with- 

11* 


234     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

stood  the  incessant  rain  of  solid  shot,  shell,  grape 
arid  minies  with  heroic  fortitude  and  a  firmer  reso 
lution  that  the  bridge  must  and  should  be  theirs. 

Captain  Allebaugh,  who  commanded  Co.  C,  (the 
color  company,)  now  resolved  that  the  time  had  come 
to  take  the  bridge,  and  the  regiment  prepared  for 
the  final  struggle  that  was  either  to  make  them  the 
victors  or  the  vanquished.  Colonel  Hartranft  gave 
the  final  orders  for  the  successful  accomplishment 
of  the  desperate  task  which  now  lay  before  it.  As 
the  regiment  made  the  charge,  Captain  Allebaugh 
led  his  company  at  double-quick  towards  a  gateway 
leading  out  of  the  field  into  the  road  that  crossed 
the  bridge,  but  on  nearing  the  gate  his  company 
became  the  target  of  the  concentrated  fire  of  the 
enemy  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  stream.  Here 
his  first  lieutenant  was  struck  down  and  his  men 
were  falling  at  every  step.  He  soon  perceived  his 
perilous  situation  and  flew  off  at  a  tangent  by 
"  right  oblique,"  and  made  a  short  detour  from  the 
gate  to  the  abutment  of  the  bridge,  and  rushed 
across  the  bridge, — only  himself,  the  three  color- 
bearers,  one  color-guard  and  his  first  sergeant,  Wil 
liam  F.  Thomas.  These  six  men  were  the  first  to 
cross  the  bridge,  but  the  remainder  of  the  regiment 
followed  close  on  their  footsteps  and  so  choked  up 
the  entrance  to  it  that  a  halt  was  necessarily  made 
on  the  stone  structure.  The  enemy  now  deserted 
their  works  and  scattered  and  scampered  over  the 
hills  like  a  huge  drove  of  scared  sheep.  The  men 
of  the  two  51sts  were  helping  their  fleeing  enemy  in 
their  flight  by  incessant  volleys  of  musketry.  Some 
few  who  would  not  risk  running  out  from  be 
hind  their  works  in  such  a  storm  of  leaden  hail, 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  235 

surrendered  by  sticking  pieces  of  newspaper  on 
the  end  of  their  rammers  and  holding  them  up  above 
(he  works  as  a  flag  of  truce.  They  were  all  taken 
prisoners,  while  the  grand  achievement  was  now  a 
thing  of  the  past,  and  the  stubbornly  contested 
bridge  was  ours,  with  the  aid  of  the  sister  regiment 
the  51st  New  York.  Colonel  Hartranft  cheered  on 
his  men  in  the  assault  until  he  became  so  exhausted 
that  he  could  not  make  himself  heard,  and  as  he 
reached  the  bridge  he  said,  "  Come  on,  boys,  for  I 
can't  halloo  any  more,"  but  kept  waving  his  hat  in 
the  air  as  encouragement  to  keep  on  across.  His 
exhausted  condition  caused  a  great  many  to  suppose 
that  he  had  been  wounded,  but  after  the  work  was 
done  he  calmly  sat  down  on  the  bridge,  and  on 
inquiry  it  was  found  that  he  was  all  right.  But  not 
so  with  a  host  of  other  heroes,  for  the  ground  from 
the  entrance  on  the  road  to  the  end  of  the  bridge, 
was  strewn  with  the  heroic  dead  and  wounded,  the 
whole  thing  not  occupying  above  twelve  minutes 
after  leaving  the  wall ;  yet  in  that  time  no  less  than 
twenty -nine  were  killed  outright,  and  ninety -six 
wounded,  as  follows : 

Lieut.  Col.  Bell,  killed. 

Co.  A. — Killed — Corpl.  James  Coulston,  private  William 
Somerlot.  Wounded — Capt.  Wm.  J.  Bolton,  serious  in  cheek  ; 
Corpl.  Levi  Bolton  ;  privates — Jas.  M.  Bolton,  Andrew  Widger, 
Clias.  Keyser,  Geo.  S.  Buzzard. 

Co.  B.— None. 

Co.  C. — Killed — Lieut.  David  Hunsicker,  Corpl.  David  Kane. 
Wounded — Sergt.  Benjamin  F.  Miller,  Corpl.  James  Sullivan, 
Corpl.  Samuel  Egolf;  privates—  Lcvi  Baum,  Henry  Davis, 
Wm.  Gunn,  Marcus  A.  Gross,  Henry  Jago,  Patrick  Rogan, 
Abraham  Walt. 

Co.  D. — Killed — -private  Michael  Mooney.  Wounded — 
Sergt.  John  W.  Gilligan,  Sergt.  Ed.  Bennett,  Corpl.  William 
Jenkins  ;  privates — Wm.  Essick,  John  Earle,  Win.  Faulkner, 
Heritor  Gillin.  Geo.  Hayberry,  Wm.  Hamburger,  Wm.  Mogee, 
Saml.  McDade,  Isaac  Sloan,  Wm.  McManemee. 


236     HISTOEY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

Co.  E. — Wounded — Private  Jackson  McFadden. 

Co.  F. — Killed — Privates,  Wm.  Conner,  Henry  Lent/,  Henry 
Shnlts.     Wounded— Capt.  L.  S.  Hart,  Sergt.  Howard  Bruce, 
Sergt.  Allen  H.  Fillman.  Corpl.  Wm.  Montgomery  ;  privates4 
— Jas.  Dolan,  D.  Freas,  R.  Mogee. 

Co.  G. — Killed — Corpl.  Jas.  Dowling  ;  privates — Miles  Dil 
lon,  Wm.  Wenrick,  Wallace  Wiggins.  Wounded — Corpl. 
Geo.  Armstrong,  private  Win.  Young. 

Co.  H. — Killed — Lieut.  Jacob  G.  Beaver,  Sergts.  Levi  Marks, 
Matthew  Vandine  ;  privates — Isaac  Witters,  Isaac  Beck,  Ed. 
Bear.  Wounded — Lieut.  Wm.  F.  Campbell,  Sergt.  Jacob  H. 
Santo  ;  privates — Anthony  Weisbacli,  Daniel  M.  Wetzell,  H. 
C.  McCormick,  Jas.  N.  Schooley,  John  W.  Erdly. 

Co.  I.— Killed— Sergt.  J.  Clark  Davis,  Corpl.  Thomas  P. 
Davis.  Wounded — Sergt.  Thos.  H.  Parker  ;  privates — John 
Murphy,  Geo.  W.  S.  Pcnnell,  Chas.  Buley,  Jacob  Emrich, 
Jacob  H.  Myers. 

Co.  K. — Wounded — Albert  Snyder,  Jacob  Fortner,  Paul 
McBride,  Erwin  Richards,  Wm.  Yates. 

But  twenty- one  names  are  on  the  above  list  of 
killed,  and  fifty-eight  names  of  the  wounded.  The 
official  returns  make  the  casualties  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five,  which  is  correct;  and  it  is  to  be  regret 
ted  that  all  the  names  were  not  obtained. 

After  getting  over  the  bridge  the  enemy  retreated 
to  a  large  cornfield  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile 
distant.  A  portion  of  them  had  taken  shelter  be 
hind  a  stone  wall  on  an  elevated  piece  of  ground 
whereon  their  artillery  were  in  battery,  but  there 
being  no  other  regiment  over  the  bridge  but  the 
two  51sts;  it  was  not  deemed  prudent  to  follow  up 
the  retreat  inasmuch  as  the  two  regiments  were 
nearly  out  of  ammunition,  there  being  only  an 
average  of  about  six  cartridges  to  a  man  in  the  51st 
P.  Y.  A  short  time  elapsed  after  the  bridge  was 
taken  before  any  other  troops  came  forward  to  rein 
force  the  two  heroic  regiments;  during  which  time 
the  51st  P.  V.  stacked  arms  on  a  line  parallel  with 
the  creek,  and  about  ten  feet  from  it.  A  few  fires 
were  then  kindled  by  the  men  for  the  purpose  of 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      237 

making  a  cup  of  coffee,  but  as  the  smoke  towered 
up  to  the  tops  of  the  trees  and  rising  higher  than 
the  hill,  it  gave  unmistakable  evidence  that  the 
Union  soldiers  were  still  in  the  neighborhood  of  the 
bridge ;  the  enemy  taking  the  smoke  as  a  point  at 
which  to  range  their  batteries,  opened  their  guns 
with  case-shot,  shell,  and  grape.  Lieut.  Col.  Bell 
had  been  up  the  creek  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
yards,  and  as  he  was  returning  towards  the  bridge 
and  when  within  fifty  yards  of  it  he  met  private 
Hugh  Brown,  and  giving  him  a  friendly  slap  on  the 
shoulder,  remarked  as  he  passed  him.  "  We  did  it 
for  them  this  time,  my  boy ;"  but  he  had  not  taken 
more  than  two  or  three  steps  when  a  grape-shot 
grazed  his  left  temple.  He  made  a  whirl  round  as 
if  on  a  pivot,  fell  on  his  side  and  rolled  down  the 
bank  of  the  creek  to  where  the  guns  of  his  regiment 
were  stacked.  The  men  rushed  to  his  aid,  and  taking 
him  up  they  found  that  he  had  received  a  frightful 
and  mortal  wound  ;  he  was  carried  to  the  other  side 
of  the  creek  in  an  unconscious  state  ;  he  lived  only 
a  few  hours  after  being  removed  to  the  field  hospital. 
Few  as  good  men  as  he  and  none  better,  fell  during 
the  whole  rebellion.  He  was  an  exemplary  Chris 
tian,  a  faithful  friend,  a  strict  disciplinarian,  but  not 
harsh,  a  thorough  gentleman,  a  ripe  scholar,  a  truly 
patriotic  and  brave  soldier ;  in  short  he  was  one  of 
God's  noblest  works.  Col.  Hartranft  and  Lieut. 
Col.  Bell  were  so  attached  to  each  other  that  their 
unfortunate  separation  kept  the  colonel  in  a  depressed 
state  of  spirits  for  a  long  time  after. 

After  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  had  been  taken  off  the  field 
the  regiment  began  to  awaken  to  another  loss  from 
their  ranks  in  the  person  of  that  gallant  and  well- 


238     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST  REGIMENT 

tried  soldier,  Capt.  Wm.  Jordon  Bolton;  of  Co.  A. 
He  received  a  most  distressing  wound  in  the  right 
cheek  from  a  minie  ball,  which  passed  down  his 
neck  and  lodged  in  his  shoulder.  Only  a  few  wit 
nessed  his  fall,  but  as  the  men  became  acquainted 
with  the  fact,  rumor  increased  until  it  was  reported 
that  he  too  was  dead.  Could  the  rebels  have  heard 
the  anathemas  that  were  being  heaped  upon  their 
heads  they  would  have  fought  harder  than  ever  to 
keep  from  falling  as  prisoners  into  the  hands  of  the 
men  of  the  51st  P.  Y.  Had  any  been  unfortunate 
enough  just  then  to  fall  into  their  hands  it  would 
have  been  far  more  than  any  officer  could  have  done 
to  save  the  captives  from  being  torn  to  pieces  by 
the  now  infuriated  regiment.  Every  man  constantly 
inquired  after  Lieut.  Col.  Bell  and  Capt.  Bolton  un 
til  it  became  known  that  Col.  Bell  was  dead,  and 
that  Capt.  Bolton  still  lived.  The  death  of  Lieut. 
Col.  Bell  creating  a  vacancy,  Maj.  Edwin  Schall  was 
promoted  to  fill  it;  and  Capt.  Wm.  J.  Bolton  was 
promoted  to  Major,  vice  Edwin  Schall,  promoted. 

While  the  two  regiments  remained  at  the  bridge 
the  enemy  kept  up  a  terrible  cannonading  ;  solid  shot, 
shell,  case-shot,  grape,  &c.,  rained  down  on  the  de 
voted  bridge  like  hail.  Col.  Ferrero  was  sitting  on 
the  low  wall  of  the  bridge  apparently  waiting  for 
orders  when  a  rifle  shell  struck  the  mason  work 
about  fifteen  inches  below  his  honor,  tearing  away 
nearly  the  whole  end  of  the  wall  without  doing  him 
a  particle  of  harm,  but  a  mule  standing  a  little  below 
the  bridge  received  the  shell  just  as  it  exploded, 
tearing  the  poor  beast  to  atoms. 

Eeinforcements  began  pouring  over  the  bridge, 
both  artillery  and  infantry,  but  like  the  two  regi- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      239 

merits  that  first  crossed  they  were  all  totally  out  of 
ammunition  ;  but  after  a  considerable  lapse  of  time 
a  quantity  of  all  kinds  of  cartridges,  both  heavy  and 
small,  arrived  and  was  issued.  The  artillery  pro 
ceeded  up  the  road  parallel  with  the  creek  to  take  up 
a  position,  but  being  unable  to  obtain  an  eligible  one 
were  forced  to  retreat,  and  the  ground  thus  gained 
had  to  be  held  by  infantry  alone,  Avhich  received  no 
aid  in  any  way  from  the  numerous  batteries  that  had 
crossed  and  were  driven  back. 

About  1  P.  M.  the  51st  P.  V.  advanced  to  the  brow 
of  the  hill  that  overlooked  the  large  cornfield,  where 
the  enemy  were  as  thick  as  bees  in  a  hive.  As  soon 
as  it  arrived  in  sight  of  the  rebel  batteries,  it  was 
greeted  by  one  of  the  most  violent  discharges  of 
case-shot  and  shells  from  the  enemy  that  it  ever  was 
under  up  to  that  time,  but  nearly  all  exploded  di 
rectly  over  the  regiment,  and  having  their  original 
force  the  fragments  did  not  strike  among  the  men  as 
thick  as  they  did  fifteen  or  twenty  yards  in  their 
rear.  The  line  of  battle  all  across  the  brow  of  the 
hill  was  lying  down,  for  no  man  could  stand  up  and 
live  one  minute,  as  the  rebel  gunners  had  exact 
range,  and  their  shell  passed  only  about  three  feet 
above  the  surface  of  the  ground.  A  number  of  the 
regiment  was  killed  and  wounded  while  lying  here. 
One  shell  went  through  the  blue  field  of  the  colors, 
which  were,  also,  terribly  riddled  by  the  rebel  minie 
balls.  After  the  51st  P.  V.  had  lain  in  line  of  bat 
tle  one  hour,  it  was  relieved  by  the  45th  P.  V.,  for  the 
51st  had  expended  its  last  cartridge  and  was  holding 
its  ground  by  the  sole  dependence  of  the  bayonet;  but 
as  the  45th  had  corne  to  take  its  place,  the  most  try 
ing  ordeal  was  to  happen,  viz.;  withdrawing  from  the 


240     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIKST   REGIMENT 

battle  ground  while  the  battle  continued.  Any 
veteran  prefers  going  into  a  battle  instead  of  com 
ing  out  of  it  while  it  rages.  The  line  that  is  coming 
in  is  bound  to  draw  the  concentrated  fire  of  the 
enemy  to  its  full  extent,  so  as  to  cut  down  all  they 
can  before  the  relief  has  the  opportunity  of  firing  a 
gun,  but  the  relief  had  come  and  was  lying  down, 
consequently  the  going  out  now  of  the  regiment 
would  draw  the  same  fire  with  the  addition  of  the 
flanks  assisting  the  centre  as  well  as  the  batteries  in 
front.  But  how  the  51st  P.  V.  withdrew  in  that  fight 
is  only  known  to  the  men  themselves,  for  after  Col. 
Hartranft  had  given  the  command,  the  only  safety 
they  had  was  by  each  one  withdrawing  on  his  own 
plans,  and  his  own  notions  of  extricating  himself 
from  difficulties.  The  men  began  to  leave  separately 
and  in  pairs,  some  sliding  down  the  hill  on  their 
backs,  feet  foremost,  some  on  their  stomachs,  some 
head  foremost,  some  rolled  down,  some  few  jumped 
to  their  feet  and  ran  with  their  utmost  speed,  while 
others  lingered  for  a  more  favorable  opportunity. 
Col.  Hartranft  and  the  colors  remained  until  the 
very  last,  as  he  would  not  leave  until  he  saw  that  his 
men  had  all  got  off'  safely.  The  regiment  occupied 
nearly  twenty  minutes  in  getting  off"  the  field,  and 
after  it  did  get  oft'  its  ranks  were  found  to  be  very 
much  thinned  by  the  enemy's  accurate  gunnery. 

The  regiment  stacked  arms  on  the  same  ground  that 
it  did  prior  to  going  into  battle,  the  first  stacks  only 
numbered  seventeen  muskets,  and  one  broken  sword 
belonging  to  Capt.  Geo.  W.  Bisbing  of  Co.  I,  which 
was  struck  by  a  fragment  of  shell,  as  he  was  pre 
paring  to  withdraw,  and  the  blade  severed  about 
six  inches  from  the  hilt,  being  a  narrow  escape  for 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  241 

the  captain.  He  carried  and  used  the  broken  sword 
on  all  occasions,  drills,  marches,  dress  parades,  re 
views,  &c.,  much  to  the  merriment  of  his  comrade 
officers,  until  his  friends  at  home,  hearing  of  the  in 
cident,  presented  him  with  a  superb  one  of  Damascus 
steel. 

After  the  regiment  had  stacked  its  seventeen  mus 
kets,  the  men  began  to  assemble  on  the  color  line 
slowly,  one  or  two  coming  in  at  a  time,  and  each  one 
wondering  how  it  was  that  any  one  arrived  ahead 
of  him.  They  remained  at  this  place  until  dark, 
when  it  was  sent  out  on  the  hill  again  to  picket 
for  the  night.  A  detail  had  been  made  of  about 
fifteen  men  to  bury  the  dead,  it  occupying  them  the 
balance  of  that  day  and  nearly  all  of  the  next,  con 
sequently  this  detail  was  not  with  the  regiment  on 
picket  that  night,  which  had  solely  to  be  done  with 
the  bayonets,  as  there  was  not  a  dozen  rounds  of 
cartridges  in  the  whole  regiment.  About  12  o'clock 
that  night  the  men  received  some  cooked  meat, 
being  the  first  and  only  food  tasted  by  any  of  them 
since  the  day  before.  The  night  was  dark  as  Cer 
berus  and  very  chilly,  and  the  position  of  the  men 
one  of  imminent  peril.  The  regiment  laid  on  the 
hill  all  of  that  night,  and  the  next  day  (18th)  until 
sundown,  when  it  was  relieved  by  an  Ohio  regiment, 
and  fell  back  across  the  bridge  and  went  into  quar 
ters  in  an  orchard  about  one  mile  from  the  bridge, 
where  it  lay  until  the  next  day,  (the  19th.)  The 
enemy  was  now  in  full  retreat  across  the  Potomac, 
McClellan  letting  them  slip  quietly  off'  instead  of 
pushing  on  after  them,  capturing  as  many  as  possi 
ble,  and  harrassing  them  in  whatever  way  he  could. 

Late  in  the  day   of   the   19th    the  regiment  left 


242     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

the    orchard  and  wended  its  way  to  the  mouth   of 
Antietam  creek,  passing   over  the   most  prominent 
parts   of  the   field   of  carnage.     The    ground   was 
strewn   with    carcasses    of    horses  and    mules,   but 
nowhere  could  be  found  any  number  of  dead  rebels, 
as  they   had  buried    them  through  the  night  and 
day  after  the  battle.     While  the  regiment  was  'at  a 
halt,    inspecting    the    ground    whereon    the    rebels 
fought,  it  was  brought  to  u attention"  for  the  pur 
pose  of  hearing  read  off'  the  promotions,  which  un 
doubtedly  were  the  fruits  of  its  trials  and  sufferings 
during  the  few  past  days.     First  in  order  was  the 
promotion  of  Gen.  Burnside  to  Major  General,  the 
next  was  the  promotion  of  Col.  Ferrero  to  Brigadier 
General.     At  the  conclusion  of  the  reading  of  each 
promotion  three  cheers  were  given  for  the  advanced 
heroes,  and  were  gracefully  acknowledged  by  each 
recipient;   but  just  as   Gen.  Ferrero  was  wheeling 
his  horse  to  leave,  Corp.  Patterson  exclaimed  in  an 
undertone,  not  intending  for  the  general  to  hear  him, 
"How  about  that  whiskey?"  but  the  quick  ears  of 
the  general  did   hear    him,  and  wheeling   his  horse 
around  he  replied,  with  a  smile,  "  That  whiskey  is 
all  right;  you  shall  soon  have  it,"  and,  true  to  his 
word,  it  came  the  next  day  in  no  stinted  quantities. 
The  regiment  went  into  camp  that  night  about  a 
mile  from   Antietam  Iron  Furnace.      Companies  I 
and  H  ^vere  sent  down  to   the   Potomac   on   picket, 
where  they  remained  until  Tuesday,  the  23d,  when 
the  balance   of  the  regiment  came  down  and   did 
picket     and     guard     duty     until    the     next    day, 
when  it  was  relieved   at  4  p.  M.  by  the  6th  New 
Hampshire.     The  regiment  then    marched  back  to 
where   the  eight  companies  had  been  quartered  at 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  243 

the  time   H  and   I   went  on   picket,  where  it  went 
into  camp. 

The  next  day  orders  were  issued  for  the  regiment 
to  be  ready  to  move  at  5  P.  M.?  but  from  some  un 
known  cause  it  did  not  move  that  night,  but  the 
next  (2tith)  day  it  left  for  better  quarters  by  crossing 
Anlietam  creek  at  the  furnace  and  proceeding  up  a 
public  thoroughfare  about  three  miles  to  where  the 
whole  9th  Corps  was  encamped.  At  this  place  the 
commanding  officers  of  McClellan's  army  had  a 
friendly  meeting,  among  the  most  conspicuous  were 
Gens.  McClellan,  Burnside,  Wilcox,  and  Cox. 

This  camp  was  beautifully  located,  and  the  white 
tents  of  McClellan's  vast  army  dotted  hills  and  plains 
far  as  the  naked  eye  could  discern.  It  became  a 
wonder  whence  all  the  troops  could  possibly  have 
come,  for  not  one-tenth  of  them  had  been  seen  at 
either  South  Mountain  or  Antietam,  and  it  was 
always  a  source  of  wonder  to  the  men  while  on  a 
march  how  it  was  that  while  moving  there  were 
always  apparently  enough  troops  in  the  column  to 
swallow  up  the  whole  confederate  force,  but  when 
in  a  fight,  two  or  three  brigades  would  be  about  all 
that  ever  could  be  seen,  and  after  the  battle  would 
be  over  it  should  be  found  that  every  command  had 
been  engaged.  The  nights  now  became  very  frosty, 
being  sharply  felt  by  the  men,  who  were  very 
scantily  clothed,  although  when  the  troops  left 
Washington  they  had  a  good  supply,  but  owing  to 
the  hard  marching  and  fighting  for  so  many  days 
and  nights  a  large  quantity  of  clotfhing  was  thrown 
away  by  the  men  as  being  too  cumbersome  for  a 
forced  march. 

It  must  here  be  mentioned  that  the  next  day  after 


244     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

the  battle  of  Antietam  Col.  Hartranft  issued  orders 
to  each  company  commander  in  his  regiment  to 
furnish  him  with  a  list  of  all  the  men's  names 
who  lay  on  the  hill  the  night  after  the  taking  of 
the  bridge,  and  had  done  picket  duty  with  the 
bayonet.  What  the  object  was  no  one  could  ever 
imagine,  but  speculation  ran  on  one  theme  and  then 
on  another  without  coming  to  any  definite  conclu 
sions.  But  the  writer's  inference  is  that  it  was 
only  for  effect  or  a  certain  influence  it  would  have 
towards  stimulating  them  to  more  daring  deeds. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

New  stand  of  colors — Review  by  President  Lincoln — Stringent 
orders — Pleasant  Valley — Complimentary  orders — Shelter 
tents — On  the  move  again — Lovettsville — Lost  in  a  snow 
storm — Humanity  of  Dr.  Cutter — Amosville — "Buying  mut 
ton" — White  Sulphur  Springs — On  the  Rappahannock — 
Artillery  duel. 

Ox  Saturday,  the  27th,  Capt.  E.  Schall  left  camp 
to  visit  his  home  on  a  short  leave  of  absence.  This 
one  incident  had  the  effect  of  raising  the  spirits  of 
the  men,  for  they  well  knew  that  nothing  much  was 
to  be  done  for  a  few  days,  and  the}'-  began  to  make 
their  tents  and  themselves  as  comfortable  as  circum 
stances  would  admit,  their  only  drawback  was  their 
scanty  supply  of  rations,  which  still  continued  for 
several  more  days. 

The  old  routine  of  duty  once  more  took  the  place 
of  marching  and  fighting.  Roll  call,  drills,  dress 
parades,  guarding,  &c. 

On  the  28th  a  beautiful  stand  of  colors  arrived 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  245 

from  the  friends  of  the  regiment  in  Nornstown. 
On  the  29th  they  were  presented  to  the  regiment  by 
a  Mr.  Chain,  one  of  a  committee,  on  behalf  of  the 
fair  donors  of  that  staid-like  little  town,  accompanied 
with  a  very  neat  and  appropriate  speech ;  but  the 
ceremonies  were  very  short,  as  orders  to  march  had 
come  in  and  all  began  to  prepare  for  a  move. 
.WJai^Hhe  '"preparations  for  moving  were  taking 
place,  the  order  was  countermanded,  and  it  remained 
in  camp  until  the  7th  of  October,  1862. 

On  the  30th  of  September  the  presentation  com 
mittee  took  their  departure  for  their  homes,  taking 
with  them  the  old  stand  of  battle- worn  colors. 
There  had  also  this  day  a  large  number  of  con 
valescents  arrived  from  the  various  hospitals  in  and 
around  Washington,  that  considerably  augmented 
the  ranks. 

October,  1862,  was  a  month  of  peace  and  rest  to 
the  Union  forces  comprising  McClellan's  army. 
Citizens  began  now  to  flock  on  the  battle-fields  of 
South  Mountain  and  Antietam  from  the  North, 
hunting  up  the  remains  of  their  deceased  relatives 
and  friends,  with  the  object  of  taking  them  home 
for  Christian  burial. 

On  Friday,  October  3d,  a  grand  review  was  got 
up  in  honor  of  the  illustrious  President  of  the 
United  States,  Abraham  Lincoln,  by  the  whole  body 
of  troops  there  encamped.  President  Lincoln  re 
viewed  the  troops  with  evident  satisfaction,  passing 
in  front  of  each  regiment  and  returning  the  salutation 
with  dignified  grace,  his  appearance  among  them 
causing  much  enthusiasm. 

On  Saturday,  the  4th,  the  regiment  was  visited  by 
a  number  of  benevolent  ladies  from  Montgomery 


246      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

county,  among  whom  were  Mrs.  Wm.  Carver  and 
Miss  Sally  Roberts,  daughter  of  that  soldier's  friend, 
Wm.  B.  Roberts,  Esq. 

While  at  this  camp,  a  portion  of  the  clothing  that 
the  men  had  left  behind  them  at  Fredericksburg 
arrived,  adding  something  more  to  their  comforts. 

Orders  of  the  most  stringent  character  against 
straggling  were  issued  by  McClellan,  and  were  read 
off' to  each  company  separately,  causing  a  more  mu 
tinous  feeling  in  the  army  than  all  the  previous 
orders  combined  could  have  done  ;  in  fact,  the  troops 
as  a  body  had  very  little  confidence  in  him  as  a 
leader,  but  they  had  the  utmost  confidence  in  his 
capacity  as  a  promulgator  of  severe  and  useless  or 
ders;  and  whatever  his  prestige  and  glory  might 
have  been,  his  tyranny  to  his  army  had  turned  all 
kindly  feelings  into  dislike ;  for  man,  partaking  of 
the  nature  of  a  "  hog,"  can  be  coaxed,  but  not  driven, 
if  he  once  resolves  to  be  stubborn,  even  in  the  army  ; 
and  the  warmest  advocates  for  his  military  prowess 
began  to  designate  him  as  uonly  a  newspaper  gen 
eral,"  meaning  thereby  that  he  was  only  made  a  great 
general  through  newspaper  puff's. 

On  the  6th  two  days'  full  rations  were  issued,  one 
of  which  was  ordered  to  be  cooked,  as  the  regiment 
was  under  orders  to  march  at  four  o'clock  the  next 
morning,  consequently  the  51st  struck  tents  at  three 
o'clock  A.  M.,  but  did  not  leave  till  sunrise,  when  it' 
started  for  Pleasant  Valley,  only  three  miles  distant 
in  an  air  line,  yet  the  regiment  had  to  march  at  least 
ten  miles  in  order  to  accomplish  the  three,  through 
one  of  the  most  tortuous  routes  that  could  be  found 
on  the  mountains.  It  lay  over  a  spur  of  South 
Mountain,  some  places  of  which  were  nearly  per- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      247 

pendicular.  The  road,  which  was  but  a  bridle  path 
running  across  a  rocky  and  uneven  surface,  and  the 
day  being  scorching  hot,  the  orders  against  strag 
gling  were  of  little  or  no  account,  for  by  the  time 
the  regiment  reached  the  summit  of  the  mountain 
about  one-third  of  the  men  lay  along  the  path 
from  base  to  summit,  panting  like  so  many  hounds 
just  in  from  a  chase.  The  descent  into  the  valley 
was  equally  laborious,  for  when  once  started  there 
was  no  holding  back.  They  began  with  "  common 
time,"  and  passing  through  "  quick  and  double- 
quick  time  "  reached  the  base  on  Pleasant  Valley 
side  at  their  fullest  speed,  and  had  become  so  scat 
tered  that  it  was  hard  to  tell  where  the  regiment 
was,  but  after  the  descent  the  men  took  a  rest  of 
nearly  an  hour,  with  the  view  of  giving  the  strag 
glers  an  opportunity  to  catch  up.  Afterwards  the 
regiment  re-formed,  and  marching  a  short  distance 
went  into  camp,  where  it  remained  until  Monday, 
the  27th  of  October,  1862.  On  the  next  day  (the  8th  ) 
after  the  regiment  arrived  in  Pleasant  Valley,  it  was 
again  visited  by  a  number  of  its  friends  from  home, 
among  whom  were  Messrs.  John  Pywell,  Alexander 
Supplee,  David  Adams,  Daniel  Fisher  and  others, 
some  of  them  staying  all  night  and  leaving  the  next 
morning  at  nine  o'clock  for  their  homes. 

On  Sunday,  the  12th,  General  Ferrero  ordered  a 
brigade  inspection  at  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
but  as  the  appearance  of  his  brigade  did  not  come 
up  to  his  expectations,  he  ordered  another  for  the 
next  day,  but  as  that  one  was  stormy  and  several 
others  in  succession,  the  inspection  did  not  take 
place,  much  to  the  gratification  of  the  men. 

On  the  15th  another   order  from  McClellan  was 


248     HISTOEY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIEST   EEGIMENT 

read  against  straggling,  and  was  still  more  stringent 
than  any  of  his  former  ones,  for  one  section  ordered 
the  shooting  down  of  the  foot-sore,  famishing,  and 
diarhoea-stricken  soldiers.  Straggling  on  a  march, 
us  must  be  acknowledged,  is  one  of  the  most  perni- 
•io'us  vices-that  ever  existed  in  the  army,  but  it  could 
have  been  greatly  lessened  by  an  ordinary  amount 
of  prudence  and  a  little  humanity  on  the  part  of  the 
commanding  officers.  The  causes  for  straggling  are 
to  be  confined  principally  to  the  following  reasons. 
First,  men  being  poorly  rationed  will  leave  the 
column  and  wander  off  to  any  house  from 
which  they  think  they  can  buy,  beg  or  steal  food. 
Secondly,  being  hurried  on  the  march,  their 
strength  fails  from  not  having  sufficient  rest  and 
food.  Thirdly,  from  being  compelled  to  wear  shoes 
that  have  little  or  no  shape  to  them,  and  (facetiously 
termed  u  gun  boats  "  by  the  men,)  are  either  too  large 
or  too  small,  consequently  blistering  the  feet  to  such 
an  extent  that  makes  it  impossible  to  keep  up  with 
the  column  when  on  a  'rapid  march,  for  in  drawing 
shoes  they  must  take  whatever  they  can  get,  whether 
they  fit  or  not.  Fourthly,  the  constant  exposure 
to  all  kinds  of  weather  while  on  the  march — heat  in 
the  day  and  cold  at  night,  rainy  weather,  perspiring 
freely,  then  lying  down  to  sleep  in  the  open  air  and 
becoming  chilled,  diarrhoea  and  dysentery,  chills  and 
fever,  and  other  ailments  setting  in — debilitates  the 
soldier  so  that  his  weakness  causes  him  to  lag  behind 
even  when  he  is  most  anxious  to  keep  up.  Take  the 
cases  of  straggling  produced  by  the  above  four 
causes,  aggregate  them  with  all  others,  such  as 
shirking,  &c.,  and  it  will  show  a  decrease  of  at  least 
ninety  per  cent.  This  is  no  imaginary  calculation, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      249 

but  it  is  from  actual  observation,  and  the  officers  who 
would  advocate  the  shooting  down  of  all  stragglers, 
have  none  to  censure  for  the  cau.se  but  themselves 
and  their  own  inhumanity,  for  on  all  marches  the 
commanding  officers  have  horses  to  carry,  them,  and 
it  is  very  easy  for  those  on  horseback  to  say  to  a 
poor  cripple  who  is  staggering  beneath  a  heavy 
knapsack,  sixty  to  one  hundred  rounds  of  cartridges, 
a  musket  and  his  other  accoutrements,  "  Get  up 
here,"  or  "go  to  your  regiment."  Such  remarks, 
can  be  heard  almost  any  minute  after  the  passing  of 
a  column  by  those  who  "  bring  up  the  rear." 

On  Thursday,  16th,  heavy  cannonading  was  heard 
in  the  direction  of  Maryland  Heights,  which  soon 
brought  orders  "to  be  ready  to  move  at  a  moment's 
notice."  Kations  were  distributed  and  cooked,  and 
everything  was  ready,  but  the  order  to  go  did  not 
come.  Col.  Hartranft  at  this  time  had  temporary 
command  of  the  brigade,  and  Lieut.-Col.  Schall  of 
the  regiment. 

While  remaining  in  camp  at  Pleasant  Valley  the 
regimental  sutler  arrived  and  opened  his  large  stock 
of  goods  to  the  soldiers,  who,  it  must  be  said,  patron 
ized  him  liberally,  notwithstanding  his  charges  were 
exorbitant;  but  as  large  as  his  prices  were,  his 
profits  were  small  in  the  end,  for  he  did  a  credit 
business  and  trusted  to  the  honor  and  honesty  of 
the  men  to  pay  him  on  "  next  pay-day,"  but  when 
pay-day  came  it  would  be  found  that  a  large 
number  of  those  trusted  would  be  absent  from  the 
regiment  by  death,  sick  in  hospitals,  or  on  detached 
service,  &c.,  and  his  losses  were  at  least  fifty  per  cent 
of  his  credit  sales. 

Congratulatory  orders  were  received  by  the  two 
12 


250     HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

51sts  from  Gen.  McClellan,  complimenting  the  two 
regiments  in  most  flattering  terms  for  taking  Antie- 
tarn  bridge,  in  which  he  said  tl  the  whole  day's  fight 
ing  would  have  been  lost  if  you  had  not  succeeded 
in  taking  that  most  important  point,  the  bridge." 

This  order  was  accompanied  by  one  of  the  same 
character  from  Gen.  A.  E.  Burnside.  It  was  while 
lying  in  Pleasant  Valley  that  the  51st  pitched  its 
first "  shelter  "  or  "  D'Abri "  tents.  They  were  issued 
and  pitched  on  Sunday,  October  5th,  1862-  The 
death  of  Gen.  Reno  put  his  corps  under  the  command 
of  Gen.  Cox,  who  held  command  of  it  only  a  few 
days,  and  the  2d  Division  was  put  under  Gen. 
Samuel  Sturgis,  Gen.  Reno's  particular  friend,  and 
the  51st  P.  V.  was  then  in  the  2d  Brigade,  2d  Divi 
sion,  9th  Corps. 

On  Sunday  night,  October  19th,  the  camp  of  the 
olst  P.  V.  was  visited  by  a  hurricane,  accompanied 
by  a  heavy  rain;  the  wind  picking  up  the  little 
shelters  and  carrying  many  of  them  to  a  great  dis 
tance,  leaving  the  inmates  to  receive  the  drenching 
rain  that  was  pouring  down.  ,  Whether  the  storm 
had  carried  away  important  bridges  or  not  it  is  hard 
to  say ;  but  a  detail  was  made  of  all  the  carpenters 
in  the  regiment  to  go  to  put  up  bridges  over  the 
Potomac,  near  Harper's  Ferry,  which  was  two  and  a 
half  miles  distant. 

The  Secretary  of  War  had  issued  orders  to  the 
effect  that  all  volunteers  could  enlist  in  the  regular 
army  for  three  years,  and  if  one  felt  inclined,  he 
could  enlist  for  three  years  and  have  whatever  time 
he  had  served  in  the  volunteer  army  deducted.  The 
result  was  that  about  forty  left  the  51st  P.  V.,  and 
went  into  the  regulars;  some  in  batteries,  some  in 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      251 

cavalry,  but  none  in  the  infantry,  they  having  had 
enough  of  that  in  the  volunteers. 

On  Thursday,  October  23d;  Col.  Hartranft  went 
home  on  a  "  leave  of  absence,"  and  Lieut.-Col.  Schall 
continued  in  command  of  the  regiment. 

On  Saturday,  the  25th,  the  regiment  received 
orders  to  march  the  next  morning.  Two  days' 
rations  were  issued  and  cooked,  but  the  next  morn 
ing  the  order  was  countermanded.  At  night  another 
storm  of  wind  and  rain  visited  the  camp,  tearing 
tents  from  their  fastenings,  and  ripping  things  in 
general. 

On  Monday  morning,  October  27th,  1862,  the  51st 
P.  V.  struck  tents  and  left  Pleasant  Valley,  Washing 
ton  county,  Md.,  on  a  march  through  Virginia, 
bringing  up  at  Fredericksburg.  After  leaving  Plea 
sant  Valley,  it  passed  through  Knoxville,  Md.,  and 
under  the  Ohio  and  Chesapeake  Canal,  and  crossed 
the  Potomac,  at  Berlin,  on  the  pontoon  bridge,  into 
Virginia,  where  it  went  into  camp  about  two  miles 
from  the  river,  on  the  Lovettsville  road,  (this  section 
of  Virginia  being  considered  the  garden  spot  of  the 
State,)  where  it  laid  until  Wednesday,  the  29th,  at 
1  p.  M.,  when  it  again  struck  tents  and  left  at  3  p.  M., 
made  a  march  of  six  miles,  and  camped  for  the  night. 
The  next  morning  at  daylight  it  again  struck  tents, 
marched  on  the  Leesburg  turnpike,  and  again  went 
into  camp  at  11  A.  M.,  on  a  secesh  farm,  making  only 
three  miles  this  day.  Eebels  were  hovering  around 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  camp ;  one  was  captured  by 
the  men  of  the  51st  in  the  farm-house.  At  5  P.  M. 
pickets  were  sent  out,  but  at  9  P.  M.  it  was  found 
necessary  to  reinforce  them,  and  all  of  Co.  I  were 
sent  out  to  picket.  The  whole  detail,  which  was  from 


252     HISTOKY    OF   THE   FIFTY  FIKST  REGIMENT 

D  and  I,  came  in  at  8  A.  M.  next  day,  having  spent  a 
hard  night  of  it  on  account  of  cold  and  hunger. 
Orders  had  been  issued  against  any  further  shooting 
of  hogs,  sheep,  and  cattle,  but  still  a  few  were  shot 
when  it  could  be  done  on  the  sly. 

After  the  regiment  left  this  place,  it  proceeded 
about  five  miles  beyond  Lovettsville,  where  it  laid 
in  camp  for  several  days,  during  which  time  the  men 
were  receiving  full  rations.  On  the  last  day  in  this 
camp  the  regimental  sutlers  arrived,  and  having 
brought  a  large  stock  of  tobacco,  the  boys  enjoy ea 
smoking  and  chewing  as  only  soldiers  know  how 
after  being  deprived  of  it  for  a  long  time ;  but  the 
price  was  exorbitant,  being  $1.50  per  plug  for  that 
which  was  worth  about  forty  cents.  Great  in 
dignation  was  manifested  by  the  boys  towards  the 
sutlers  for  selling  their  tobacco  to  men  of  other  regi 
ments,  as  all  sutlers  were  forbidden  to  sell  to  any 
other  but  the  regiment  to  which  they  were  attached; 
but  in  this  case  the  51st  P.  Y.  had  been  without  their 
pay  for  over  four  months,  and  all  that  was  sold  by 
the  sutlers  to  it  had  to  be  credited  until  it  got  paid 
oft',  but  what  was  purchased  by  outsiders  was  sold  to 
them  for  cash  only  ;  hence  the  partiality. 

A  severe  snow  storm  began  on  the  7th  of  Novem 
ber,  early  in  the  day,  and  at  3  o'clock  the  regiment 
left  its  camp  at  Wheatland,  and  marched  for  the 
Kappahannock.  It  proceeded  in  the  face  of  a  driving 
and  pitiless  storm  of  snow  and  hail  until  about  ten 
o'clock  at  night,  when  it  became  evident  that  the 
division  had  lost  its  way  in  an  ugly  gorge  or  ravine, 
amid  a  dense  forest,  that  was  only  equalled  by  the 
Wilderness  itself.  After  penetrating  this  horrible 
gorge  to  within  four  miles  of  the  river,  Dr.  Cutter, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      253 

brigade  surgeon,  rode  to  the  front  of  the  column,  and 
forbid  Gen.  Ferrero  to  proceed  any  farther.  Gen. 
Ferrero  replied  that  he  must  cross  the  river  that 
night.  Dr.  Cutter  replied  that  as  he  was  responsible 
for  the  health  of  the  brigade,  he  protested  against 
making  the  men  ford  a  river  in  the  midst  of  such 
a  stormy  night,  when  the  stream  was  swelled  to  such 
a  volume  as  would  nearly  submerge  the  men,  de 
claring  that  such  a  step  would  endanger  the  lives  and 
health  of  every  officer  and  man  on  foot  who  would 
attempt  to  ford  a  deep  river  filled  with  floating  ice ; 
and  then  lying  down  on  the  snowy  ground,  without 
any  shelter,  in  their  saturated  clothing,  would  double 
the  risk.  The  humanity  of  Dr.  Cutter,  as  well  as  his 
determination  to  appeal  to  a  court  martial  for  vindi 
cation  of  his  authority,  decided  General  Ferrero  to 
give  the  command  to  "  about  face  "  to  his  brigade, 
and  it  marched  back  a  mile  or  two ;  then  taking 
a  different  road  on  the  left,  which  led  to  another  ford 
higher  up  the  river,  but  ten  miles  farther.  After 
proceeding  up  this  road  three  miles,  we  bivouacked 
for  the  night  in  a  woods  and  on  the  roadside.  It  was 
past  midnight  when  the  regiment  arrived  here,  and, 
from  the  good  condition  of  the  fences  along  the  road, 
the  evidence  was  plain  enough  that  that  place  had 
not  been  visited  by  either  army  up  to  the  present 
stage  of  the  rebellion.  Bat  in  fifteen  minutes  there 
after  it  was  hard  to  find  a  panel  of  fence  within  any 
reasonable  distance.  Huge  fires  were  kindled,  a  cup 
of  coffee  apiece  was  made,  then  rails  were  laid  down 
in  the  snow  for  beds,  and  the  boys,  placing  their  feet 
towards  the  fires,  soon  fell  into  a  sound  sleep,  not 
withstanding  their  hard  couch,  without  covering, 
wet  clothes,  and  shoes  full  of  snow.  Next  day,  at  8 


254     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

A.  M.  the  regiment  again  was  on  the  march,  crossed 
the  river  at  noon,  and  camped  near  Amosville,  (a 
village  that  the  rebels  had  placarded  all  the  doors 
with  "  small-pox,")  exhausted  and  totally  out  of 
rations ;  but  the  latter  soon  came  all  right.  Al 
though  the  rebels  had  left  only  a  few  hours  before, 
the  boys  of  the  51st  P.  V.  found  cattle,  hogs,  and 
sheep  in  abundance,  and  the  sharp  crack  of  their 
unerring  muskets  told  too  plainly  of  the  slaughter 
that  was  going  on.  The  regiment  had  hardly  got 
their  tents  pitched  when  Col.  Hartranft  espied  the 
boys  coming  into  camp  with  whole  carcasses  of  ani 
mals  slaughtered  and  dressed  ready  for  use.  He 
immediately  issued  the  most  stringent  orders  against 
shooting  anything  belonging  to  the  citizens,  unless 
it  was  first  paid  for  ;  but  the  only  effect  that  the 
order  had  was  to  make  the  boys  go  a  greater 
distance  in  quest  of  game,  where  their  guns  could 
not  be  heard  by  "  old  Johnny."  One  of  the  boys  shot 
a  splendid  lamb,  and  not  knowing  anything  about  the 
order  issued,  cut  it  up  into  quarters  and  brought 
it  into  camp  while  Col.  H.  was  standing  in  front  of 
his  quarters.  The  man  entertaining  a  feeling  for  the 
empty  haversack  of  Col.  H.,  determined  to  make  him. 
a  present  of  a  hind-quarter  of  the  lamb,  and  walked 
up  to  him  as  innocent  as  an  unconscious  babe  of  the 
existence  of  the  order  and  tendered  his  offering  of 
meat  with  a  graceful  salute  to  the  colonel,  who  gave 
him  one  of  those  withering  looks,  which  only  the  col 
onel  knows  how  to  give  a  man  that  displeases  him, 
and  inquired  how  he  obtained  it.  The  man  knew  by 
"  old  Johnny's  "  look  that  something  was  wrong,  and 
being  quick  of  perception  he  instantly  guessed  what 
it  was  and  replied  in  a  firm  tone,  "  I  bought  it." 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEES.  255 

The  cloud  passed  from  the  colonel's  brow  and  he 
took  the  gift  with  suitable  acknowledgments.  The 
man  returned  to  his  tent  rejoicing  at  his  lucky 
escape  from  arrest,  for  none  of  the  boys  had  given 
him  any  warning,  and  all  were  gazing  on  the  scene 
to  see  what  would  be  the  result,  but  no  more  meat 
was  given  to  the  colonel  that  day. 

The  regiment  arrived  here  on  Saturday,  at  4.  p.  M., 
along  with  the  35th  Mass.  The  remainder  of  the 
brigade,  under  Gen  Ferrero,  had  marched  to  Jeffer 
son  ville,  a  small  town  only  a  few  miles  from  Amos- 
ville. 

On  Sunday,  the  9th,  1862,  at  5  o'clock  p.  M.,  the 
51st  received  orders  to  pack  up  and  join  the  brigade 
at  Jefferson  that  night.  At  dark  it  was  relieved 
by  the  48th  P.  V.,  who  had  a  battle  with  the  enemy 
about  an  hour  after  the  51st  had  left.  The  attack 
was  intended  for  the  51st,  but  as  it  had  gone  the 
48th  enjoyed  the  benefits  of  the  contest.  Having 
arrived  at  Jefferson  the  regiment  went  into  camp 
with  the  brigade  just  outside  of  the  town. 

On  Wednesday,  Nov.  12th,  1862,  the  regiment 
again  left  for  a  march  to  the  "  White  Sulphur 
Springs,"  where  it  arrived  in  safety  after  passing  over 
the  Kappahannock  at  the  point  the  turnpike  inter 
sects  the  river,  a  short  distance  from  the  Springs. 
The  bridge  at  this  place  had  been  fired  by  the  rebels 
to  prevent  the  Union  troops  from  crossing,  and  it 
now  lay  a  smouldering  mass  of  charred  timbers,  be 
ing  completely  demolished.  The  regiment  had 
barely  crossed  the  river  on  the  charred  logs  which 
lay  floating  on  the  water,  before  the  enemy  made 
their  appearance  with  a  large  force  on  the  opposite 
side.  After  crossing  the  river  the  regiment  went 


256      HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

into  camp  in  a  field  nearly  opposite  to  the  '•'  Springs 
Mansion  House,"  close  to  the  turnpike.  After 
pitching  tents  the  men  began  to  clamor  for  rations, 
having  been  on  less  thari  half  allowance  from  the 
time  they  left  Wheatland,  Ya.;  a  week  before,  but 
the  first  day  at  the  Springs  was  spent  without  a 
mouthful  of  food  of  any  kind. 

The  next  day  the  commissary  sergeant,  Samuel 
P.  Stephens,  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  large  lot  of 
mouldy  hard  tack  which  was  totally  unfit  for  use, 
but  "hunger  being  the  best  sauce,"  the  men  tried  to 
satisfy  their  appetite  by  washing  off' the  mould  and 
boiling  them  awhile,  and  then  frying  them  with 
whatever  kind  of  grease  they  could  get. 

Two  privates  of  Capt.  Bell's,  Co.  B,  were  captured 
on  the  13th,  while  out  on  picket ;  the  rebel  cavalry 
made  a  dash  on  them  and  succeeded  in  taking  the 
two  men  with  their  camp  kettle  which  was  hanging 
over  the  fire.  The  cavalry  in  making  this  dash 
drove  the  pickets  in,  and  the  two  captured  men 
who  had  been  out  hunting  for  something  to  eat,  on 
their  return  to  the  post  were  taken  by  the  enemy. 
Capt.  Bell  dismounted  one  of  the  rebel  cavalry, 
however,  with  a  little  rifle  he  carried  with  him  out 
on  picket. 

The  lieutenant  colonel  and  adjutant  of  the  35th 
Mass,  were  captured  at  or  near  the  same  time ;  they 
had  crossed  the  river  in  quest  of  food,  and  were 
eating  their  dinners  quietly  in  a  large  white  house 
close  to  the  ruins  of  the  bridge  and  within  sight  of 
their  camp,  when  to  their  surprise  the  rebels  entered 
the  house  and  secured  them  before  any  alarm  could 
be  given.  The  artillerists  discovered  the  rebels  and 
sent  a  few  shells  in  among  them,  which  hurried  the 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEEKS.  257 

"  butternuts  "  away  from  that  neighborhood  quicker 
than  they  came  into  it. 

On  Friday,  Nov.  Mth,  the  51st  struck  tents  and 
started  for  Fredericksburg  ;  but  ere  it  had  proceeded 
one  and  a-half  miles  on  its  way  it  was  furiously 
assailed  by  the  rebel  artillery  from  the  opposite  side 
of  the  Kappahannock,  and  only  about  six  hundred 
yards  distant.  Col.  Hartranft  ordered  the  regiment 
to  lie  down,  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  it  out  of 
range  of  the  enemy's  guns.  He  then  proceeded  to 
the  top  of  the  hill  that  overlooked  both  the  river 
and  the  enemy's  position,  and  assisted  to  get  some 
field-pieces  into  i{  battery  "  to  return  the  rebel  com 
pliments.  The  wagon  train  which  was  in  the  rear 
of  the  column  now  began  to  be  the  target  for  rebel 
shells  and  solid  shot ;  one  shell  passed  through  a 
wagon  loaded  with  ammunition,  tearing  things  irre 
spectively.  While  this  was  taking  place  the  men 
of  the  51st  P.  V.,  anxious  to  see  what  was  going  on, 
crawled  up  to  the  top  of  the  hill  to  get  a  view,  but 
had  no  sooner  got  there  than  the  enemy  directed 
their  fire  on  the  regiment  and  the  battery.  Col. 
Hartranft  perceiving  the  men  running  around  evi 
dently  exposing  themselves  needlessly  to  the 
dangers,  came  running  back  to  his  regiment  and 
ordering  them  to  "fall  in,"  he  formed  a  "line  of 
battle  "  arid  marched  them  to  a  more  secure  position. 
He  evidently  was  angry  at  his  men,  for  he,  after 
placing  the  line  where  he  wanted  it,  gave  the  com 
mand  to  "  lie  down,  "  and  down  they  went ;  as  they 
prostrated  themselves  he  added  with  considerable 
warmth,  "  and  see  that  you  stay  there ! "  He 
then  went  back  to  the  battery,  when  an  artillery 

duel  began  which   lasted   for  a  considerable  time. 

12* 


258     HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIEST   REGIMENT 

Several  of  the  batterymen  were  severely  wounded  ; 
one  of  whom  lost  a  leg  and  died  in  the  ambulance 
the  next  morning. 

The  difference  between  a  regiment  of  raw  re 
cruits  and  one  of  veterans  was  plainly  demonstrated 
during  the  vigorous  shelling  at  this  place;  while 
the  men  of  the  51st  P.  Y.  were  anxious  to  be  on  the 
top  of  the  hill  to  see  all  that  was  going  on,  and  dar 
ingly  exposing  themselves  to  the  enemy's  fire,  the  men 
of  the  new  regiment  were  hugging  to  and  burrowing 
into  the  ground  like  so  many  rabbits,  or  else  seeking 
shelter  behind  the  trees  in  a  neighboring  woods  to 
avoid  as  much  of  the  danger  as  possible.  Fre 
quently  they  would  ask  the  old  soldiers  "  How  do 
you  do  when  they  shell  you  this  way,"  the  veterans' 

reply  invariably  was  "  Stand  and  take  it,  you  d d 

fool !  how  else  do  you  suppose  ?" 

The  firing  ceased  on  both  sides  at  2  P.  M.,  the 
enemy  getting  far  the  worst  of  the  attack.  The  51st 
again  left  and  marched  about  six  miles  towards 
Falmouth,  and  then  camped  for  the  night  in  a  large 
field  not  far  from  the  river. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      259 


CHAPTEK   XIX  . 

Falniouth — Picketing  the  Rappahannock — "Rally  on  the  sut 
ler" — Fredericksburg — Demand  for  surrender  by  Gen. 
Burn  side — Secret  dealings  "with  the  enemy — Preparing  to 
cross  the  river — Withdrawal  of  the  pickets — Opening  of  the 
Battle  of  Fredericksburg. 

THE  next  day,  the  15th,  the  regiment  left  at  8  A.  M., 
making  eighteen  miles  that  day  over  one  of  the 
most  miserable  roads  in  Virginia,  and  camped  at 
night  in  a  torrent  of  rain,  sixteen  miles  from  Fred 
ericksburg.  The  men  now  suffered  with  sore  feet 
and  empty  stomachs  ;  a  meagre  supply  of  rations, 
however,  was  drawn  about  10  o'clock  at  night,  and 
was  all  eaten  at  the  one  meal.  Early  the  next 
morning  the  regiment  again  left  and  before  night 
had  reached  the  "  Yellow  house,"  situate  on  the  road 
leading  to  Falrnouth,  six  or  eight  miles  distant. 

At  9  A.  M.  on  the  17th,  the  olst  left  the  Yellow 
house  and  reached  Falmouth,  opposite  Fredericks 
burg,  at  noon.  In  passing  Fredericksburg  on  the 
left  bank  of  the  Eappahannock,  the  rebel  pickets 
were  very  visible  down  at  the  large  brick 
mill  near  the  city.  At  this  time  there  were  not 
more  than  a  dozen  rebel  soldiers  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  city  and  on  the  banks  of  the  river  ;  they  looked 
with  astonishment  at  the  approach  of  the  Union 
troops,  but  evinced  no  fear,  as  the  river  was  between 
them.  Could  it  have  been  possible  for  Burnside  to 
have  crossed  the  river  that  day,  or  two  or  three  days 
thereafter,  what  an  ocean  of  loyal  blood  would  have 
been  spared  at  that  terrible  slaughter  pen. 


260     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIE*fY-FIKST   REGIMENT 

After  arriving  at  Falmoutb  the  regiment  went  into 
camp  about  a  mile  from  its  old  camp  ground  of  the 
August  before.  Are  its  ranks  as  full  at  its  return 
to  the  old  spot  as  when  it  left  there?  The  blood 
stained  fields  of  Manassas,  Chantilly,  South  Moun 
tain,  Antietam  and  Sulphur  Springs,  can  answer, 
with  a  certainty  that  cannot  be  denied,  that  only 
about  one-half  returned  of  those  who  were  there  but 
three  months  before !  What  sufferings!  what  trials! 
what  anxiety  had  been  experienced  in  that  short 
time  !  but  with  it  all  they  had  just  cause  to  offer  thanks 
to  the  Giver  of  all  Good  for  the  complete  success 
which  had  thus  far  crowned  their  efforts  for  the  per 
petuity  of  a  government  that  must  be  admired  in  all 
future  ages !  After  a  few  clays  rest  and  a  plentiful 
supply  of  rations,  the  men  began  to  regain  their 
wonted  gayety.  The  regular  routine  of  camp  duty 
was  resumed  again,  but  the  principal  part  of  it  was 
picketing  the  left  bank  of  the  Rappahannock,  opposite 
Fredericksburg.  The  line  of  picket  posts  which  fell 
to  the  lot  of  the  51st  P.  Y.  extended  from  Falmouth 
close  to  the  water's  edge,  down  nearly  to  the  railroad 
bridge  of  three-fourths  of  a  mile  in  extent ;  once  in 
a  while  it  would  have  to  picket  a  little  below  the 
bridge.  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  was  nearly  always  in 
command  of  that  part  of  the  line,  having  his  quar 
ters  and  reserve  post  in  a  ravine  only  a  few  yards 
in  the  rear  of  the  picket  line. 

The  picketing  at  this  place  was  done  similar  to 
camp  guarding ;  the  detail  was  divided  into  three 
reliefs,  and  as  the  weather  was  very  stormy  and 
cold,  it  was  found  the  safest  and  most  satisfactory 
mode.  The  headquarters  of  the  picket  commander 
were  close  to  the  town  of  Falmouth,  and  the  men 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      261 

having  four  hours  off  duty,  on  being  relieved  would 
visit  the  shops  and  stores  in  the  town  to  purchase 
pies,  baker's  bread,  &c.  Several  would  enter  stores 
that  were  kept  by  a  number  of  Israelitish  gentlemen, 
from  Baltimore,  Philadelphia  and  New  York,  who 
came  here  to  respond  to  the  wants  of  the  army  by 
selling  very  poor  articles  for  the  highest  price  ob 
tainable  ;  but  the  only  way  the  soldiers  could  keep 
pace  with  these  men,  who  in  a  business-like  way 
robbed  the  soldiers  of  their  hard-earned  money, 
because  they  (the  Jews)  were  the  only  ones  that  had 
anything  in  that  line  to  sell,  was  by  what  was  face 
tiously  called,  "rally  on  the  sutler,"  and  frequent 
"  rallies  "  were  made  on  their  stores,  and  only  a  few 
moments  sufficed  to  "clean  out"  the  largest  estab 
lishment  in  the  town. 

On  the  21st  of  November,  1862,  Gen.  Burnside 
sent  over  a  flag  of  truce  to  the  civil  authorities  of 
Fredericksburg,  demanding  the  surrender  of  the 
city ;  stating  his  terms  on  which  he  would  receive 
the  surrender,  and  giving  them  until  eight  o'clock  of 
the  morning  of  the  24th  to  decide  on  the  demand, 
accompanying  it  with  a  threat  that  if  his  request 
was  not  acceded  to,  he  would  immediately  open 
his  guns  on  the  town  after  the  expiration  of  the 
allotted  time.  The  rebels  taking  advantage  of  the 
days  of  grace  granted  them  to  surrender,  began 
to  run  up  earthworks  in  the  rear  of  the  city  with 
all  the  alacrity  imaginable,  and  by  the  expiration 
of  the  truce  they  were  nearly  as  much  prepared 
to  shell  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  as  it  was  to  shell 
the  city.  As  is  well  known  the  city  was  not  sur 
rendered,  and  the  Union  forces  began  with  renewed 
vigor  to  consummate  the  threat  of  the  commander-in- 


262     HISTOEY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIEST   EEGIMENT 

chief.  Pontoons  were  arriving,  siege  and  field  pieces 
were  landing,  fresh  troops  constantly  pouring  in, 
and  every  thing  bespoke  the  approaching  gigantic 
struggle  that  was  soon  to  take  place.  During  all 
these  preparations,  the  51st  was  doing  picket  duty 
on  one  side  of  the  river,  and  the  rebel  pickets  on 
the  other  side  ;  distance  apart  about  40  to  60  yards, 
excepting  near  the  bridge  where  the  river  was 
somewhat  wider. 

Frequently  the  orders  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac 
would  be  known  by  the  rebels  before  it  would  be 
made  public  to  themselves.  The  rebel  pickets  would 
halloo  over  to  the  u Yanks"  and  ask  "how  soon  are 
you  going  to  draw  and  cook  them  three  days'  rations?" 
"  how  soon  is  the  balloon  to  be  ready  ?"  and  hosts  of 
other  similar  questions.  Shortly  after  those  questions 
would  be  asked,  the  orders  relating  to  them  would 
be  read  off  to  the  different  commands  in  the  army, 
showing  conclusively  that  among  the  knowing  ones 
there  were  sneaking  traitors  who  in  some  way  tele 
graphed  to  their  friends  in  rebeldom  all  the  most 
important  secret  orders,  and  thus  it  was,  while  the 
United  States  was  doing  its  utmost  to  avoid  expos 
ure  to  the  enemy  of  its  plans  of  honorable  warfare, 
yet  there  were  some  who  found  a  way  to  divulge 
such  orders  and  plans  as  were  thought  to  be  known 
to  only  a  certain  few,  and  yet  the  traitors  could 
very  seldom  be  detected.  One  circumstance,  if  true, 
which  the  writer  doubts  very  much,  explains  the 
whole  mystery:  at  Falrhouth  is  a  flour  and  grist 
mill,  and  on  the  opposite  edge  of  the  river,  but  lower 
down,  is  another  one  of  the  same  character,  which 
was  used  by  the  rebels  as  their  picket  head-quarters, 
while  at  the  rear  of  the  Falmouth  Mill  is  an  open 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      263 

lot  of  ground  interspersed  with  hills  and  gullies. 
Once,  about  midnight,  one  of  the  citizens  of  Falmouth 
happened  to  cross  this  lot  in  the  rear  of  the  mill,  and 
hearing  a  "clicking  "  in  the  upper  part  of  the  build 
ing  stopped  and,  placing  his  ear  against  the  wall,  he 
found  that  the  noise  proceeded  from  the  loft,  and 
sounded  like  the  clicking  of  a  telegraphic  instrument; 
he  straightway  made  known  his  discoveries  to  the 
pickets  nearest  to  the  mill,  who  immediately  reported 
the  circumstances.  The  place  was  searched,  and  in 
the  loft  a  telegraphic  operator  with  his  instruments 
was  found  ;  a  wire  was  discovered  to  extend  from 
the  loft  to  the  basement  of  the  mill,  and  thence  under 
the  water  of  the  river  to  the  mill  on  the  opposite 
shore  ;  thus  the  mystery  of  all  the  exposures  of  the 
orders  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  was  explained. 
How  true  is  the  above,  the  writer  is  unable  to  say> 
but  believes  it  to  be  wholly  a  fabrication,  although  at 
the  time  of  the  reputed  discovery  immense  excite 
ment  was  produced  by  it,  yet  the  writer  was  unable 
to  trace  the  affair  to  anyone  who  knew  anything 
about  the  facts. 

On  Sunday,  November  23d,  1862,  orders  were 
issued  to  be  ready  to  move  at  a  moment's  notice,  in 
anticipation  of  the  refusal  of  the  surrender  of  the 
city  of  Fredericksburg.  On  Monday  morning, 
the  24th,  the  51st  P.  Y.  struck  tents  at  day 
light  and  packed  up  everything  in  quite  a 
hurry,  fully  expecting  the  shelling  of  the  city  to 
begin  before  the  regiment  could  be  ready  to  move, 
but  not  a  gun  was  fired,  and  after  being  in  "line"  for 
a  considerable  time  the  whole  division  was  moved 
back  about  one  mile  further,  and  went  into  carnp. 
Ferrero's  brigade  formed  a  splendid  camp  in  the 


264:      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

form  of  a  hollow  square,  the  51st  P.  Y.  and  the 
51st  N.  Y.  forming  the  front,  the  35th  Mass,  one 
side,  the  llth  N.  H.  the  rear,  and  the  21st  Mass. 
the  remaining  side.  The  hollow  was  used  as  a 
parade  and  drill  ground,  Gen.  Ferrero's  head  quar 
ters  in  the  rear  and  to  the  left  of  the  21st  Mass. 
This  new  camp  furnished  much  more  comfortable 
quarters  for  the  men  than  the  locality  from  which 
they  had  just  moved;  the  water  had  to  be  carried 
for  the  use  of  the  camps  nearly  a  mile,  but  every 
thing  else  was  more  convenient.  The  great  want 
of  the  army  at  this  time  was  suitable  clothing.  Ke- 
views  were  held  every  few  days  by  the  different 
commanders,  for  the  purpose  of  finding  out  the 
wants  of  their  men,  and  to  see  their  condition.  Not 
withstanding  the  ragged  and  almost  naked  condition 
of  the  men  of  the  51st  P.  V.,  their  complaints  ceased 
after  witnessing  the  deplorable  condition  of  the  men 
of  the  4th  Maine  regiment,  who,  while  out  on  a 
review,  were  marching  and  counter-marching  over 
the  hard  frozen  ground  in  their  bare  feet,  and  with 
only  a  part  of  a  leg  to  their  pantaloons,  without 
drawers  or  sufficient  underclothing  to  keep  them  com 
fortable  in  a  room  with  a  good  fire.  While  the 
whole  army  was  suffering  severely  from  the  cold 
blasts  of  winter,  yet  the  poor  men  of  the  4th  Maine, 
although  in  a  far  worse  off  state  than  any  other  regi 
ment,  bore  their  sufferings  heroically,  and  did  their 
duty  cheerfully  and  promptly. 

Next  to  the  want  of  clothing  came  the  want  of 
tobacco,  both  for  smoking  and  chewing ;  but  the 
smokers  rather  had  the  advantage  of  the  chewers, 
for  they  smoked  coffee,  weeds,  and  dried  leaves, 
which  served  in  a  manner  as  a  substitute  for  to- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEES.  265 

bacco,  and  a  very  poor  one  it  was ;  but  the  chewers 
were  nearly  crazy  for  a  "quid"  of  the  weed,  and  as 
nothing  furnished  a  substitute  for  it,  they  had  to 
"grin  and  bear  it,"  until  the  paymaster  should  come 
along  and  extricate  them  from  their  troubles,  which 
he  did  about  midnight  of  December  2d,  1862,  much 
to  the  joy  of  the  men  whose  families  had  been  four 
months  without  receiving  any  money  for  their  sup 
port  in  that  time,  excepting  the  miserable  pittance 
that  was  allowed  them  so  begrudgingly  by  the 
county  relief  boards,  and  which  had  been  reduced 
to  so  small  an  amount  that  it  was  only  a  mockery 
in  the  "  stay  at  homes  "  to  offer  it. 

Everything  was  quietly  progressing  along  the 
Eappahannock  towards  the  completion  of  Gen. 
Burnside's  plan  of  attack.  So  quiet  in  fact  was  it 
carried  on,  that  up  to  within  ten  minutes  of  the  at 
tack  on  the  city,  the  time  seemed  as  far  distant  as  it 
did  three  weeks  before.  The  51st  P.  V.  was  sent 
down  on  picket  at  8  o'clock  on  Wednesday  morn 
ing,  and  was  posted  at  the  railroad  bridge  that 
crossed  the  river  opposite  the  city.  The  right  posts 
were  stationed  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards 
above  the  bridge,  the  centre  posts  at  the  entrance  of 
the  bridge,  and  the  left  ones  about  forty  yards  below. 
The  reserves  and  head-quarters  of  the  pickets  were 
in  an  old  dilapidated  mill  only  a  few  yards  further 
off  to  the  left  and  rear. 

Nothing  transpired  through  the  day  to  indicate 
an  early  attack;  but  at  11  P.  M.,  an  officer  of  the 
engineer  corps,  visited  the  post  on  which  the  writer 
was  stationed,  on  the  extreme  right,  and  walking  out 
to  the  edge  of  the  water,  he  pushed  a  stick  about  a 
foot  long  into  the  mud,  leaving  a  few  inches  of  it 


266     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

above  ground.  He  then  returned,  and  asked  me : 
"Who  has  charge  of  this  post?"  I  answered:  "I 
have."  He  then  inquired  :  "Are  you  a  sergeant?" 
"Yes,  sir,  I  am,"  was  the  reply.  "Then,  sergeant, 
I  want  you  to  watch  that  stick,  and  see  if  the  water 
recedes  from  it,  or  comes  up  to  it,"  and  adding,  as  he 
turned  to  go  away,  I  will  be  here  again  to-night  for 
your  report." 

At  2  A.  M.,  of  the  llth,  he  returned,  in  company 
with  three  other  officers,  and  examined  the  river 
bank  for  two  hundred  or  three  hundred  yards  above 
the  bridge,  and  then  returning  inquired  "what  report 
had  I  to  make  on  the  state  of  the  water  at  the  stick  ?" 
I  answered  that  "  the  water,  or  rather  the  tide,  had 
not  varied  one  particle  since  he  put  the  stick  there." 
"  All  right,"  said  he,  and  he  and  his  companions  left 
in  a  hurry;  but  in  a  few  minutes  Capt.  McKibbin, 
Ferrer o's  chief  of  staff,  visited  the  post,  and  asked 
for  the  officer  in  command  of  the  pickets,  and  being 
answered  that  "  his  quarters  were  in  the  old  mill 
below  the  bridge,"  he  said  :  "  Pack  up,  boys,  and 
get  out  of  here  as  soon  as  you  can,  for  we  are  going 
to  open  on  the  city  as  quick  as  you  get  away,"  and 
added :  "  Sergeant,  run  tell  your  commanding  officer 
to  draw  in  his  pickets  with  all  speed  possible,  and 
get  away  without  even  the  rattle  of  a  tin  cup." 
"  Yes,  sir,"  was  the  reply. 

The  pickets  were  all  withdrawn  without  the  least 
noise  imaginable;  for  now  the  truth  was  breaking 
upon  thernthat  the  all-important  moment  had  arrived. 
They  formed  in  line,  and  as  the  right  of  the  column 
filed  into  the  road,  to  its  surprise  there  it  found  the 
pontoon  boats  all  loaded,  and  the  teams  at  a  halt 
within  fifty  yards  of  the  river,  only  waiting  for  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      267 

pickets  to  get  away.  So  quietly  had  all  this  been 
done  that  even  the  pickets  noticed  no  unusual  noise 
of  preparations  in  their  rear.  The  regiment  returned 
to  its  camp,  and  had  "turned  in"  for  a  nap,  when, 
like  a  sharp  peal  of  thunder,  the  belching  forth  of  one 
hundred  and  seventy-nine  siege  guns,  as  if  fired  by  the 
one  single  "  lanyard,"  proclaimed  in  unmistakable 
tones  that  there  was  no  more  sleep  for  that  day. 

The  51st  P.  V.  was  under  Col.  Hartranft,  and  in 
Ferrero's  brigade,  of  Sturgis's  Division,  of  Wilcox's 
9th  Corps,  of  Sumner's  command,  the  latter  consist 
ing  of  the  2d  and  9th  Corps. 


CHAPTEE    XX. 

Awful  cannonade  —  Crossing  the  pontoon — Forward  move 
ment  to  position — Destructive  tire  of  the  enemy — Heavy 
losses — Death  of  Capt.  Bell— Both  armies  closely  engaged — 
Out  of  ammunition — Second  day — Picket  fighting — Worth 
less  shells — Retreat  of  the  army  across  the  river — Burying 
the  dead — The  killed  and  wounded. 

AT  4  A.  M.,  of  December  12, 1862,  the  cannonading 
was  terrific;  the  air  was  heavy,  and  the  clouds  of 
smoke  hung  like  a  funeral  pall  over  the  doomed 
city  ;  the  rebels  returned  shot  for  shot,  and  the  earth 
quaked  for  miles  around  as  if  convulsed  by  some 
hidden  spasm  of  nature  in  the  very  centre  of  its 
rotundity ;  the  crashing  of  shot  and  shells  through 
the  houses  could  be  heard  two  or  three  miles  distant 
from  the  scene  of  action. 

In  a  private  letter,  giving  a  description  of  the  can 
nonading,  the  writer  truthfully  says:  "I  have  been 


268     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

in  eight  battles,  and  hard  ones  at  that,  and  if  all  the 
cannonading  of  Eoanoke,  Newbern,  Bull  Kun, 
South  Mountain  and  Antielam  were  put  into  one 
fight,  it  would  be  nothing  to  compare  to  this ;"  and 
so  it  was  considered  at  the  time.  By  noon  troops 
bad  crossed  the  river,  some  in  boats  and  some  by 
swimming  over  ;  the  rebels  contesting  every  inch  of 
the  way.  The  engineer  corps  suffered  terribly  from 
the  guns  of  the  sharp-shooters  hid  in  the  dwelling- 
houses  in  the  city. 

The  51st  P.  V.,  at  5  A.  M.,  of  the  12th  of  Decem 
ber,  1862,  left  its  camp  to  assist  in  the  capture  of  the 
city.  At  8  A.  M.,  it  was  halted  at  the  "  Phillips 
House,"  and  awaited  further  orders.  The  sight  from 
this  elevated  position  was  most  sublime;  the  entire 
lines  of  the  contending  forces  could  be  viewed  from 
this  point.  Sumner's  command  was  all  massed  here 
and  ready  for  the  order  to  "forward,"  when  finally 
it  came,  and  the  51st  P.  V.  moved  towards  the  pon 
toon  bridge.  As  it  was  descending  the  hill  in  front 
of  the  "Lacy  House"  and  close  to  the  river,  the 
rebel  batteries  directed  their  shots  at  it,  but  did  no 
further  harm  than  to  hurry  the  regiment  across  the 
river.  After  crossing  it,  the  regiment  filed  to  the 
left,  stacked  arms,  and  awaited  further  orders.  Dur 
ing  this  time  other  troops  were  crossing  and  filing 
up  the  streets  that  ran  parallel  with  the  river.  The 
cross  streets  were  unsafe  to  bivouack  in,  for  they 
were  parallel  with  the  enemy's  guns. 

The  51st  P.  Y.  remained  at  its  bivouac  until  10 
A.  M.  of  the  next  day,  (Saturday,  December  13,)  when 
it  formed  a  line  and  broke  its  stacks  and  started  for 
that  ever  memorable  battle-field.  After  proceeding 
a  few  squares  towards  the  lower  end  of  the  town,  it 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  269 

was  halted  to  allow  the  remainder  of  the  brigade  to 
come  up.  By  12  o'clock,  noon,  everything  was 
ready  to  enter  the  field.  Col.  Hartranft  had  hard 
work  to  keep  his  men  in  a  sheltered  place  while 
waiting  for  the  other  part  of  the  brigade  to  corne 
up,  for  as  quick  as  he  would  get  a  couple  of  men 
back  to  their  places  others  would  slip  off  to  peep 
around  the  corners  of  the  houses  to  get  a  glimpse  of 
the  enemy.  Col.  Hartranft  made  some  very  narrow 
escapes  himself  while  using  his  field  glass  to  recon 
noitre  the  rebel  works.  The  enemy  could  see  that 
the  city  was  full  of  Union  troops,  and  they  shelled 
it  without  mercy.  At  last  the  command  to  "  for 
ward  "  was  given,  and  right  cheerfully  did  the  men 
step  off  to  their  work.  After  proceeding  to  the 
lower  end  of  the  city  the  regiment  filed  right,  up  a 
street  that  terminated  abruptly  by  a  large  brick-kiln 
that  extended  entirely  across  the  street,  but  on  filing 
in  it  gave  the  rebels  a  full  view  of  its  column  from 
right  to  left,  and  they  opened  their  batteries  of  heavy 
guns  on  the  advancing  troops  with  all  the  fury  of 
the  demons.  But  Col  Hartranft  was  equal  to  the 
emergency.  He  halted  the  regiment,  ordering  them 
to  "close  up  "  and  lie  down.  The  brick-kiln  flank 
ing  them  saved  them  from  any  shells  that  might  pass 
over  it,  but  as  each  shell  would  bury  itself  in  the 
immense  pile,  the  brick  dust  would  rise  in  a  cloud 
that  completely  obscured  the  regiment  from  their 
view.  While  it  was  lying  down  Col.  Hartranft  was 
reconnoitering  to  see  and  find  out  the  best  way  to 
get  his  men  into  the  field  with  as  little  exposure  as 
possible.  Five  minutes'  time  sufficed  him ;  he 
commanded  "  rise  up  ;"  the  men  instantly  sprang  to 
their  feet,  and  taking  their  places  he  again  com- 


270     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

manded,  "  Forward,  double-quick."  The  regiment 
followed  the  colonel  and  succeeded  in  reaching  the 
railroad  cut  without  any  harm.  Gen.  Ferrero,  who 
was  in  the  excavation,  yelled  out  at  the  top  of  his 
voice  to  "go  in  and  give  it  to  them."  After  reach 
ing  the  railroad  Col.  Hartranft  halted  his  men  to 
give  them  their  wind,  as  they  were  breathless,  but 
the  halt  was  only  for  a  minute,  as  the  men  were  un 
der  a  severe  fire  of  musketry  that  enfiladed  that  part 
of  the  track,  and  they  again  started  to  their  assigned 
position.  After  leaving  the  cut  the  way  was  over  a 
large  clear  field  for  nearly  a  third  of  a  mile,  and  al 
though  this  was  accomplished  in  an  incredible  short 
time,  yet  so  severe  and  terrific  was  the  shelling  and 
musketry  that  the  regiment  lost  more  men  in  reach 
ing  their  position  than  it  did  in  all  the  other  part  of 
the  battle.  The  air  seemed  to  be  so  full  of  balls  that 
one  would  suppose  that  a  finger  could  not  be  pointed 
towards  the  rebel  batteries  without  being  hit  on  the 
end  with  a  bullet,  and  it  is  a  mystery  to  the  writer 
how  under  the  sun  even  one  man  reached  alive  the 
position  assigned  to  the  regiment,  it  being  directly 
in  face  of  more  than  a  mile  of  earthworks,  behind 
which  lay  thousands  of  rebels,  who  kept  up  inces 
sant  volley  after  volley  of  musketry,  and  their  bat 
teries  volleys  of  grape  and  canister,  to  say  nothing 
of  the  rifle  shells  that  passed  through  the  ranks  and 
went  screeching  and  whizzing  through  the  air.  It 
was  here  where  Capt.  Ferdinand  Bell,  of  Co.  B,  was 
killed,  whose  loss  was  most  seriously  felt  by  all  in 
the  regiment,  and  particularly  in  his  company.  He 
was  an  accomplished  and  unassuming  gentleman,  a 
good  disciplinarian,  a  true  patriot,  and  as  fearless  as 
he  was  gentle.  Before  the  regiment  had  reached  its 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      271 

position  its  way  was  somewhat  impeded  by  a  series 
of  high  board  fences  that  inclosed  some  of  the  land, 
and  instead  of  the  regiment  being  able  to  advance 
in  an  unbroken  line  of  battle,  it  had  to  divide  into 
several  squads  to  pass  through  the  apertures  of  the 
fence.  The  boards  being  nailed  on  perpendicularly, 
with  stout  nails  and  plenty  of  them,  it  was  only  here 
and  there  that  a  board  had  been  wrenched  off,  and 
the  passages  through  the  fences  were  blocked  up 
with  heaps  of  dead,  dying  and  wounded,  who  had 
to  be  trampled  upon  in  order  to  get  through.  The 
groans  of  the  dying  and  wounded  soldiers  when 
trodden  on  were  heartrending  in  the  extreme,  but  it 
was  no  time  or  place  to  stop  to  evince  sympathy  for 
the  brave  fellows  who  lay  weltering  in  their  gore. 
All  felt  it,  but  as  each  one  knew  not  how  soon  he 
was  to  fall  and  share  the  same  fate,  he  passed  on 
heedless  of  all  cries  for  aid.  The  men  of  the  51st 
were  falling  at  every  step,  some  killed  outright, 
some  with  a  leg  or  an  arm  torn  off,  some  with  their 
bowels  or  brains  oozing  out,  and  some  falling  as  if 
they  had  been  hit,  bat  in  fact  had  only  fallen  to  im 
press  their  officers  that  they  had  been  wounded,  and 
thus  escape  proceeding  any  further.  A  few  only 
sought  this  subterfuge  ;  but  it  did  not  avail  them  in 
the  end,  for  their  tricks  were  discovered.  After  the 
battle  was  over  and  the  regiment  back  in  camp,  Col. 
Hartranft  ordered  all  the  names  of  the  skulkers  to 
be  handed  to  him  for  the  investigation  of  their  con 
duct.  Some  had  slipped  out  of  the  ranks  of  the 
regiment  while  it  was  passing  through  the  city  and 
sought  shelter  in  the  cellars  of  the  houses,  where 
they  remained  until  the  battle  ended.  Others  ac 
companied  the  regiment  half  way  across  the  field 


272     HISTOEY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

and  then  returned ;  others  reached  the  board  fence 
and  lay  down  behind  it  until  they  saw  a  favorable 
opportunity  to  get  back;  others  fell  on  the  open 
field  as  if  wounded,  and  got  off  in  whatever  way 
they  deemed  best;  but  several  of  them,  as  they  were 
getting  their  cowardly  carcasses  off)  received  severe 
wounds — it  was  a  pity  they  had  not  killed  them. 
One  man  had  nearly  reached  his  place  when  he  was 
seized  with  an  unaccountable  fear,  and  risked  run 
ning  all  the  way  back  to  the  city  in  preference  to 
advancing  ten  or  twelve  yards  further  to  where  he 
could  lie  down  along  with  his  regiment.  This  man 
had  proven  himself  a  brave  soldier  on  all  other  occa 
sions,  and  gone  into  all  the  battles  like  a  true  sol 
dier,  and  what  could  have  turned  him  back  at  such 
a  time  Col.  Hartranft  could  not  divine.  When  ques 
tioned  as  to  the  cause  he  replied,  "  When  I  started 
I  fully  intended  to  go  through  it  all  if  I  lived ;  but 
after  I  got  to  the  board  fence  the  balls  so  filled  the 
air  that  I  was  too  much  confused  to  know  what  I 
was  doing  or  what  I  was  to  do,  and  fear  took  com 
plete  possession  of  me,  and  I  could  not  have  ad 
vanced  another  step  if  I  had  been  shot  for  not  doing 
it."  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  a  man  who  was  known 
to  his  whole  company  to  have  been  at  Eoanoke, 
Newbern,  Carnden,  Bull  Run,  Chantilly,  South 
Mountain,  Antietam  and  Sulphur  Springs,  was  seized 
with  fear  that  took  such  complete  possession  of  his 
better  judgment  as  to  render  him  liable  to  a  court 
martial,  but  it  is  only  another  proof  of  how  thick 
the  projectiles  flew  at  that  one  point  of  the  line. 

After  the  regiment  had  got  into  position  it  cannot 
be  denied  but  what  it  severely  punished  the  rebels 
in  their  front,  for,  cold  and  chilly  as  the  air  was,  the 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLTJNTKEKS.  273 

loading  and  firing  of  the  muskets  caused  the  men  to 
perspire  as  freely  as  if  they  were  cradling  in  the 
harvest  field.  Nearly  all  the  rnen  had  one  hundred 
rounds  of  cartridges  each,  and,  after  expending  them, 
they  turned  over  to  the  9th  New  Hampshire  who 
were  extended  at  their  feet,  and  begged  all  the  am 
munition  from  them  that  they  had  to  spare,  and  not 
satisfied  with  that,  they  called  on  all  the  regiments 
in  the  neighborhood  to  loan  them  a  few  rounds. 
The  olst  New  York  responded  handsomely,  but 
after  begging  and  borrowing  all  that  was  available, 
the  men  began  to  search  the  cartridge-boxes  of  their 
dead  comrades.  The  regiment  had  lain  there  in 
action  from  12  o'clock,  noon,  till  4  p.  M.,  and  had 
expended  all  the  ammunition  it  could  obtain ;  it 
then  gave  way  to  allow  another  brigade  that  laid  at 
its  feet  en  masse  to  relieve  it,  when  the  time  to  do  so 
arrived.  But  it  was  impossible  for  any  regiment  to 
get  off  the  field  during  daylight,  consequently  the 
relieving  brigade  had  to  wedge  itself  in  among  the 
2d  brigade  as  best  it  could.  At  this  time  there  were 
no  less  than  eight  lines  of  battle  occupying  the  one 
line.  But  the  breadth  of  this  line  was  about  thirty 
feet,  and  as  close  and  solid  as  it  was  possible  to 
pack  human  beings. 

A  large  and  beautiful  black  dog  belonging  to  the 
51st  New  York,  that  seemed  to  be  aware  of  the 
danger  of  the  place,  continued  crouched  to  the 
ground,  as  if  to  keep  out  of  the  way  of  the  missiles, 
but  being  tired  of  his  one  position  he  endeavored  to 
change  it  by  getting  up,  when  a  ball  pierced  the 
poor  faithful  animal,  and  he  sank  down  to  rise  no 
more.  He  lay  there  in  great  agony  until  near  night, 

when  death  put  an  end  to  his  sufferings.    At  8  p.  M., 

13 


274     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

under  cover  of  the  darkness,  all  the  regiments  which 
had  been  in  battle  through  the  day  were  ordered 
to  withdraw  from  the  field  to  get  rations  and  ammu 
nition.  Col.  Hartranft  had  the  good  fortune  to  get 
his  men  off  in  tolerable  safety,  notwithstanding  the 
enemy  kept  up  a  constant  fire  of  musketry  and  artil 
lery. 

After  leaving  the  field,  the  regiment  quartered  for 
the  night  in  a  dwelling  house  where  Gren.  Ferrero 
had  made  his  headquarters.  The  night  was  spent 
by  both  officers  and  men  in  cooking  and  sleeping, 
for  it  was  now  seven  days  and  nights  since  the  51st 
P.  V.  had  had  an  hour  of  unbroken  rest,  and  most  of 
the  time  without  food,  consequently  all  went  to  rest 
as  soon  as  possible.  The  next  day,  Sunday,  Dec.  14th, 
was  spent  in  resting  and  the  cleaning  up  of  arms  and 
accoutrements.  At  night  it  lay  down  in  the  antici 
pation  of  another  good  night's  rest,  but  that  was  not 
to  be,  for  at  7  P.  M.  orders  were  received  to  go  out 
on  picket,  and  as  the  men  were  all  lying  down  and 
most  of  them  being  sound  asleep,  they  received  the 
orders  with  some  grumbling,  but  got  up,  and  put 
ting  the  best  phase  on  the  matter  went  out  on  picket, 
where  they  remained  until  12  o'clock,  midnight,  of 
the  15th,  occupying  precisely  the  same  ground  that 
they  did  during  the  battle  on  the  13th.  The  picket 
ing  here  was  just  about  equal  to  the  fighting  on 
Saturday,  and  no  man,  during  the  twenty-six  hours 
of  picketing,  dared  to  raise  his  head  up  three  inches 
from  the  ground,  for  as  soon  as  he  did  it,  one  hun 
dred  balls  would  be  discharged  at  him.  On  the  first 
going  out  of  the  pickets  the  regiment  threw  up  a 
shallow  breastwork  of  about  four  or  six  inches  high, 
but  could  do  no  better  for  the  want  of  tools.  But, 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  275 

small  as  the  affair  was,  it  afforded  a  deal  of  protec 
tion  to  the  heads  that  lay  behind  it,  but  after  awhile 
the  men  got  hold  of  tools  and  dug  pits  with  eager 
ness,  and  made  themselves  pretty  secure. 

The  regiment  was  never  in  a  tighter  place  than  it 
now  experienced.  For  twenty-six  hours  had  the 
men  to  lie  on  their  stomachs,  and  were  deprived  of 
food,  water  or  even  the  privilege  of  complying  with 
the  demands  of  nature,  which  caused  those  who  suf 
fered  from  diarrhoea  intense  agony.  On  the  second 
night  of  being  out  the  regiment  contrived  to  get  the 
breastwork  a  little  higher,  but  just  as  it  was  deemed 
high  enough  for  picket  purposes,  at  midnight,  Col. 
Hartranft  received  orders  to  withdraw  his  men. 
But  no  other  troops  coming  to  relieve  him,  he  did 
not  deem  it  prudent  to  withdraw  his  regiment  and 
leave  that  part  of  the  line  without  protection  and  ex 
posed  to  the  advance  of  the  rebel  videttes.  He  there 
fore  went  into  the  city  to  find  a  regiment  that  was 
willing  to  relieve  his.  But  a  large  portion  of  the  army 
had  already  retreated,  and  had  crossed  the  river  and 
returned  to  their  old  quarters,  and  all  being  anxious 
to  get  over  he  had  considerable  difficulty  in  finding 
any  colonel  to  take  his  place.  But  when  about  giving 
up  the  hunt  in  despair  he  fortunately  met  a  German 
colonel  who  readily  assented  to  relieve  him,  and  in 
less  than  half  an  hour  afterwards  the  German  regiment 
had  quietly  came  out,  and  as  quietly  did  the  51st 
go  in.  The  writer  exceedingly  regrets  having  for 
gotten  the  name  and  title  of  the  generous  colonel 
and  his  regiment  of  braves. 

The  incidents  of  the  picketing  are  without  any 
particular  interest.  The  shelling  of  the  pickets  by 
the  rebel  batteries  began  to  be  pretty  serious  towards 


276     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIPTY-FIKST    REGIMENT 

sundown  of  the  15th,  for  the  enemy  was  receiving 
little  or  no  harm  from  Burnside's  shells,  as  not  more 
than  one  out  often  exploded,  while  the  enemy's  nearly 
all  exploded,  consequently  they  did  not  fear  the  Union 
batteries,  and  therefore  turned  their  guns  on  the 
pickets.  One  very  heavy  shell  from  a  rebel  gun 
exploded  in  among  the  pickets  of  the  21st  Mass, 
without  doing  any  further  harm  than  to  cause  them 
as  Col.  Wolford  said,  "to  huddle  up  closer;"  not  a 
man  of  them  raised  himself  up  one  inch,  which,  if 
they  had  done  so,  it  would  have  caused  them  to  re 
ceive  a  terrible  shelling  from  the  enemy,  for  they  no 
doubt  were  only  shelling  the'  picket  line  to  feel  it 
and  find  out  what  force,  if  any,  was  there;  but  after 
half  an  hour's  hard  shelling  the  enemy  ceased  firing 
their  heavy  guns,  evidently  satisfied  that  nothing 
was  to  be  found  out  by  that  kind  of  warfare.  After 
nightfall  Col.  H.  ordered  several  videttes  to  go  out, 
and  about  10  o'clock,  from  some  unaccountable 
cause  the  enemy's  pickets  thinking  they  were  at 
tacked  poured  a  terrific  volley  into  the  51st  P.  V., 
which  was  returned  so  quick  that  the  poor  videttes 
being  between  the  two  fires  knew  not  what  to  do ; 
one  of  them,  L.  Patterson,  in  fact  had  slyly  crept  up 
to  the  rebel  works  and  was  listening  to  their  conver 
sation,  which  was  about  building  breastworks,  when 
the  volley  was  fired.  As  soon  as  the  firing  slackened 
a  little  the  videttes  came  tumbling  over  the  rifle  pits 
in  double  quick,  and  complained  bitterly  of  their 
comrades  returning  the  fire  without  first  showing 
them  a  chance  to  corne  in;  said  one  of  them,  "as 
soon  as  the  Johnnies  fired  I  laid  down,  and  my  hair 
flew  up  so  quick  that  I  lost  my  cap,  and  to  mend 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      277 

the  matter,  you  cusses  had  to  fire  without  letting 
us  know  that  you  were  going  to." 

The  regiment  took  into  this  battle,  not  counting 
the  skulkers,  270  effective  men,  and  came  out  with 
180.  Loss  in  killed  and  wounded,  90.  This  does 
not  include  all  the  wounded,  for  a  large  number  of 
the  slightly  wounded  refused  to  report  themselves.* 

The  regiment  after  coming  off  picket  proceeded  to 
its  old  camp,  where  it  found  the  whole  brigade  had 
been  for  some  hours;  all  immediately  began  to  fix 
up  their  old  quarters  again  for  another  night's  rest. 

After  returning  to  camp  and  the  last  living  man 

*  The  following  is  the  list  of  killed  and  wounded  as  far  as 
can  be  named  individually. 

Co.  A. — Killed — Privates  Win.  Herd,  Jas.  Maguire,  Wm. 
Vanhorn,  Washington  McDade,  David  McMicken. 

Wounded — Privates  A.  Custer,  Albanus  Lare,  Chas.  Toy,  Ed 
ward  Kellichner,  Jacob  H.  Moydr. 

Co.  B.— Killed— Capt.  Ferdinand  W.  Bell,  Private  Wm.  F. 
Strafford. 

Co.  C. — Killed — Privates  Michael  McMullen,  Geo.  H.  Swee 
ney.  Wounded — Privates  Jos.  W.  Detwiler,  Chas.  R.  Fox, 
James  Gunn,  David  R.  Spare. 

Co.  Dt — Killed — Privates  Benjamin  Kemmerer,  John  Wes 
ley  Lonsdale,  John  Mogee. 

Wounded — Lieut.  Lewis  Hallnian,  1st  Sergt.  Jonathan 
Swallow,  Sergt.  Isaac  Fizone,  Sergt.  Freeman  S.  Davis,  Corp'l. 
Win.  Dignan,  Privates  Elwood  Lukens,  Henry  C.  Moore,  John 
McNulty,  Owen  Rex,  Thomas  D.  Smith,  Samuel  Sharp,  Henry 
Sutch,  Albert  List,  John  Beal,  Alfred  R.  Gray,  John  G.  Guyer, 
Thomas  Vanfossen,  George  W.  Yarnall. 

Co,  E.— Wounded— Sergt.  Lewis  G.  Titus. 

Co.  F. — Killed — Manasses  Reininger. 

Wounded — Sergt.  Wm.  B.  Hart,  Privates  Henry  K.  Adleman, 
Nathan  Kulp,  Albert  Teaney,  Henry  White,  David  Munsic, 
Christian  McCormick. 

Co.  G. — Wounded — Private  Wni.  Recides. 

Co.  H. — Wounded — Sergt.  D.  C.  Brown,  Sergt.  Geo.  Breon, 
Sergt.  Wm.  Allison,  John  Dougherty.  Missing — Levi  Bren- 
singer. 

Co.  I. — Killed — Private  George  Krieble. 

Wounded — Lieut.  Mark  R.  Supplce,  Sergt.  Andrew  J.  Lee- 
dom.  Sergt.  Geo.  Carney,  Corp'l.  James  Y.  Shainline,  Privates 
George  W.  Fulton,  John  R.  Herd,  A.  Me  ister,  and  Thomas 
McGolrich. 


278     HISTORY   OF  THE    FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  that  could  get  away 
had  crossed  the  river,  the  retreat  being  a  complete 
success,  the  pontoon  boats  were  all  taken  up  and 
hauled  away  before  daylight  of  the  morning  of  the 
16th.  During  the  day  a  flag  of  truce  was  sent  by 
Burnside  to  Lee,  and  permission  obtained  to  bury 
our  dead,  the  corpses  of  which  lay  unburied  from 
Saturday  the  13th,  to  Wednesday  the  17th. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  17th,  a  detail  of  about 
thirty  men  was  sent  out  of  the  51st  P.  V.  to  cross  the 
river  for  the  purpose  of  burying  the  Union  dead — a 
like  number  was  detailed  from  most  of  the  other 
regiments.  They  labored  hard  to  get  the  task  accom 
plished  that  day,  but  it  was  impossible  to  do  so,  and 
several  hours  of  the  morning  of  the  18th  were  con 
sumed  before  the  sacred  duty  could  be  brought  to  a 
close.  On  the  return  of  the  detail,  they  were  per 
mitted  to  bring  off  such  of  their  dead  comrades  as 
could  be  sent  home  for  decent  burial.  They  reported 
that  all  of  the  Union  dead  had  been  entirely  stripped 
of  their  clothing,  and  were  left  by  the  heartless 
wretches  in  a  complete  state  of  nudity.  The  body 
of  J.  Wesley  Lonsdale,  of  Co.  D.,  was  brought  over  on 
a  stretcher,  and  its  nudity  confirmed  all  that  was  re 
ported  by  the  detail.  The  dead  were  buried  in  the 
trenches  that  the  51st  and  other  regiments  had 
thrown  up  while  out  on  picket  the  last  two  nights  of 
duty  on  the  battle  field. 

While  our  men  were  employed  in  burying  the 
dead,  the  rebels  made  them  large  offers  for  blankets, 
blouses,  shirts  and  overcoats,  which  they  had  with 
them  at  the  time.  As  much  as  $25  in  greenbacks 
were  offered  for  a  blanket  or  an  overcoat,  but  none 
were  treacherous  enough  to  sell  them  any,  for  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      279 

very  money  offered  by  the  rebels  had  just  been 
taken  out  of  the  pockets  of  the  Union  slain.  The 
enemy  must  have  reaped  a  rich  harvest  in  rifling 
our  dead,  as  it  is  well  known  nearly  all  of  them  had 
their  four  months'  pay  in  their  pockets  at  the  time 
they  were  shot  down,  all  of  which  had  fallen  into 
rebel  hands. 

Now  that  the  dead  were  buried,  and  things  began 
to  assume  their  former  aspect,  the  different  regiments 
returning  to  their  regular  camp  duty,  damages  being 
repaired,  the  wounded  attended  to,  and  all  recover 
ing  from  their  fatigue,  a  few  little  incidents  may  not 
be  out  of  place  here. 

The  day  the  51st  P.  V.  first  crossed  the  bridge,  a 
regiment  of  cavalry  came  down  the  hill  in  front  of 
the  "  Lacy  House,"  evidently  intending  to  venture 
across  the  river  on  the  pontoons.  It  was  headed  by 
a  full  mounted  brass  band.  As  it  was  descending 
the  hill,  several  rebel  shells  were  fired  at  it,  but  did 
not  prevent  their  advance.  On  its  arrival  at  the 
foot  of  the  hill,  and  directlyat  the  end  of  the  bridge, 
it  halted,  and  struck  up  the  popular  air  of  "  Bully  for 
You."  After  playing  the  variations  they  had  just  got 
out  the  first  note  of  "  bully"  when  a  shell  exploded  in 
their  midst,  and  in  less  time  than  it  takes  here  to 
tell  it,  not  one  of  the  band  could  be  seen,  some  scam 
pered  off  up  the  river  full  gallop,  others  down  the 
river  and  disappeared  as  suddenly  as  they  stopped 
their  "  bull," — amid  the  shouts  and  cheers  of  all  the 
infantry  at  rest  in  the  vicinity. 

After  the  51st  P.  V.  had  got  on  the  field  of  battle, 
Col.  Hartranft  discovered  oneof  his  drummers,  James 
Chase,  out  there.  The  colonel  asked  him  what  made 
him  come  out,  the  drummer  boy  replied,  "  Oh  !  I 


280     HISTOEY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIKST    REGIMENT 

thought  I'd  like  to  see  the  fun."  He  had  the  proud 
satisfaction  of  knowing  that  his  bravery  met  the 
approval  of  Col.  II.,  and  also  of  saying  what  none  of 
his  drummer  companions  could  say,  viz.:  "that  I 
was  in  the  whole  of  the  Fredericksburg  light  of 
my  own  free  will,"  for  drummers  were  supposed 'to 
remain  in  the  rear  and  guard  whatever  property  was 
left  there  by  the  men  while  in  action. 

Letters  were  received  by  different  ones  in  the 
regiment  from  home,  inquiring  how  the  army  ap 
peared  to  take  the  defeat.  One  answer  to  the  in 
quiries  is  at  my  disposal,  which  conveys  the  feelings 
of  a  large  number  of  the  men  who  "  were  whipped." 
The  letter  says:  "  You  say,  that  I  don't  say  how  we 
all  take  our  defeat.  We  take  that  whipping  like  a 
parcel  of  schoolboys  would  take  a  whipping,  some 
crying  and  whining  while  getting  it,  and  then  after 
its  over,  one  boy  blames  the  other  for  getting  them  all 
whipped,  and  finally  come  to  the  conclusion  that  if  it 
wasn't  for  the  master  none  of  them  would  have  got 
it.  And  so  it  is  with  us.  we  don't  like  the  defeat. 
Some  blame  Burnside,  and  perhaps  justly,  but  I 
don't  think  he  is  to  blame.  I  am  certain  the  heads 
at  Washington  are  the  party  that  got  us  whipped  so 
'  very  goot,'  as  one  of  our  Dutchmen  says."  The  de 
feat  caused  considerable  discussion,  some  blame  the 
2d  Corps,  some  the  9th,  some  one  and  others  another, 
and  so  on,  but  none  knew  exactly  where  to  put  the 
blame,  for  all  corps  and  all  commanders  came  in  for 
a  goodly  share  of  censure.  One  thing  certain  is,  that 
our  defeat  was  partly  brought  about  by  the  worthless 
large  ammunition  that  had  been  shipped  to  Burn- 
side  for  his  artillery,  for  the  writer  can  boldly  say, 
and  without  fear  of  contradiction,  that  he  saw  our 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      281 

shells  by  thousands  strike  in  the  right  spot,  and  not 
more  than  one,  on  cm  average,  out  of  ten  would  explode, 
while  nine  out  of  ten  of  rebel  shells  exploded.  Our 
gunnery  was  far  superior  to  the  rebels,  and  no  blame 
can  be  attached  to"  our  brave  artillerists.  The  rebels 
themselves  told  some  of  the  "  detail  to  bury  the  dead  " 
that  they  found  a  large  number  of  our  shells  loaded 
with  sawdust,  split  peas,  and  beans  and  sand.  Gen. 
0.  B.  Wilcox  commanded  the  9th  Corps  at  Fred- 
ericksburg. 

Could  any  other  than  a  defeat  follow  the  use  of 
such  ammunition  ?  It  was  evident  to  the  whole 
line  of  battle  that  our  artillery  was  doing  very  little 
to  help  the  infantry,  although  the  batteries  were  pour 
ing  in  tons  upon  tons  of  iron  into  the  rebel  works, 
but  with  little  or  no  effect. 


13* 


282     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 


PART    I II,  -18  6  3, 


CHAPTER  I. 

The    Emancipation    proclamation  —  Winter— -"  Guarding ''    a 

sutler's  wagons — An  investigation — Another  sutler  cleaned 
out — Good  things  from  home — Suicide  of  Serg.  Jones — Burn- 
side  again  on  the  move — The  army  stuck  in  the  mud — Return 
to  quarters — End  of  the  campaign — Burnside's  corps  ordered 
West — Columbus,  Ohio — Conflict  with  provost  guards — Loss 
of  life. 

ON  the  1st  of  January  1863,  President  Lincoln 
issued  his  famous  emancipation  proclamation,  and 
on  the  arrival  of  the  next  mail  thereafter,  it  was 
known  throughout  the  whole  Army  of  the  Potomac, 
and  caused  considerable  angry  discussions,  the 
soldiers  believing  that  the  object,  for  which  they 
came  into  the  army,  namely,  to  restore  the  Union, 
was' to  be  ulaid  on  the  table  "  and  henceforth  they 
were  to  fight  only  to  free  the  negro  from  slavery. 
Officers  and  men  swore  that  they  would  neither 
draw  a  sword  or  fire  a  shot  in  support  of  such  a  pro 
clamation,  but  time  wore  away  the  prejudice  and  a 
better  feeling  took  its  place.  The  regiment  continued 
to  go  down  on  picket  along  the  Eappahannock  every 
other  day  during  the  remainder  of  its  stay  at 
Fredericksburg.  % 

The  winter  now  had  set  in  in  good  earnest;  the 
snow  was  nearly  a  foot  deep,  and  the  mud  without 
any  bottom  that  could  be  found.  One  morning  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.  283 

5 1st  P.  V.  was  relieved  rather  earlier  than  usual,  on 
account  of  a  violent  snow  storm  that  prevailed  all 
night  before ;  and  Lieut.-Col.  Schall,  out  of  compas 
sion  for  the  men,  allowed  them  to  return  to  camp  as 
they  got  relieved,  instead  of  keeping  them  all  to 
gether,  and  taking  them  into  camp  in  regular  order. 
The  first  post  relieved  was  one  that  private  Roberts, 
of  Co.  A,  was  on ;  as  soon  as  he  was  relieved  he  left 
for  camp.  After  wading  through  the  snow  and  mud 
until  he  passed  the  camp  of  the  114th  P.  Y.  (Collis's 
Zouaves),  and  within  a  couple  of  hundred  yards  of 
his  own,  he  espied  several  wagons  stuck  in  the  mud, 
on  the  Falmouth  and  Belle  Plains  road.  Something 
induced  him  to  take  a  peep  into  the  wagons,  which  he 
did,  and  found  them  heavily  laden  with  sutler  goods.- 
The  owner  of  them  -and  the  mules  had  gone,  and  the 
property  was  left  in  charge  of  a  negro  as  guard. 
Bob  having  his  gun  with  bayonet  fixed,  and  also  his 
blanket  strung  around  his  neck,  went  up  to  the  negro 
and  asked  him  "  If  he  was  the  one  that  was  left  to 
guard  the  wagons  ?"  Receiving  an  affirmative  reply, 
Bob  then  told  him,  "  Well,  I've  come  to  relieve  you, 
and  your  boss  wants  you  to  come  and  get  your  break 
fast,  right  away."  The  colored  man  replied,  "  Golly, 

I'se  glad  of  dat,  for  I'se  most  d cold,"  and  left 

Bob  to  guard  the  wagons.  But  no  sooner  had  the 
negro  got  out  of  sight  than  Bob  began  to  unload  the 
wagons  and  carry  the  articles  into  camp,  where  and 
when  he  explained  everything  to  his  comrades,  and 
in  less  than  half  an  hour  every  dollar's  worth  was 
carried  off.  About  ten  o'clock  the  proprietor  re 
turned  with  his  mules  to  get  his  wagons  out  of  the 
mud,  and  his  astonishment  at  seeing  them  all  empty 
can  be  better  imagined  than  described  ;  but  it  was 


284      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

easy  for  him  to  tell  where  the  goods  had  gone  to,  For 
a  hard  beaten  path  in  the  snow,  from  the  wagons  to 
the  camp,  was  circumstantial  evidence  enough  for 
him  to  accuse  the  51st  P.  V.  of  the  robbery,  which 
he  did,  and  called  on  Col.  Hartranft  to  assist  him  in 
his  searches  for  his  goods ;  but  the  colonel  became 
highly  indignant  at  the  sutler  for  his  audacity  in 
accusing  his  regiment  of  being  guilty  of  such  an  act, 
as  he  was  at  that  time  entirely  ignorant  of  the  rob 
bery.  The  colonel  referred  him  to  Gen.  Ferrero  to 
get  permission  to  allow  him  to  search  the  whole 
brigade,  as  he,  the  colonel,,  was  not  willing  for  him  to 
single  out  the  51st  P.  V.  for  search  while  other  regi 
ments  were  so  near,  and  they  to  be  exempted.  So 
the  sutler  went  to  Gen.  Ferrero;  but  the  general  had 
very  little  sympathy  for  sutlers, -and  referred  him  to 
the  provost  marshal  to  get  a  permit  to  search  the 
division.  But  the  provost  marshal  deputized  his 
lieutenant  (who  was  no  other  than  a  lieutenant  of 
Bob's  company,  2d  Lieut.  Jno.  Moore,  of  Co.  A, 
who  was  on  the  provost  marshal's  staff)  to  accom 
pany  the  sutler  to  search  the  brigade  for  the  goods, 
holding  a  special  order  to  that  effect.  The  search 
began  at  Co.  A,  and  as  soon  as  the  sutler  and  Lieut. 
Moore  entered  the  first  tent  to  examine  knapsacks, 
Cos.  A,  F,  and  D's  boys  began  to  remove  their  plun 
der  to  the  left  of  the  regiment,  and  the  search  through 
Co.  A  was  unsuccessful ;  the  same  with  F  and  D. 
But  while  the  search  was  going  on  in  Co.  D,  Co.  I 
boys  carried  their  share  of  the  goods  up  to  A  and  F. 
Being  through  with  D,  they  next  visited  Co.  I ;  but 
Co.  I  was  just  then  without  any  commissioned 
officers  present,  Capt.  Bisbing  having  gone  to  Fal- 
mouth,  1st  Lieut.  Geo.  Schall  was  acting  adjutant, 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  285 

and  the  2d  Lieut.  M.  R.  Supplee,  having  been 
wounded  in  the  late  battle,  was  at  home;  conse 
quently  the  company  was  left  to  the  command  of  the 
fifth  sergeant.  Considerable  time  was  lost  in  getting 
the  sergeant  to  take  the  responsibility  on  himself  to 
permit  the  search ;  but  as  the  boys  all  had  ample 
time  to  get  the  things  away  safely,  it  was  concluded 
to  begin.  But  while  searching  the  tents  of  this 
company,  the  Cos.  C,  E,  II,  G,  K,  and  B  re 
moved  whatever  articles  they  had  got  to  the  right 
companies,  and  the  search  was  useless,  for  not  a 
solitary  thing  was  found  belonging  to  him,  or,  if  he 
saw  anything  which  he  thought  was  his  in  the  pos 
session  of  the  men,  they  would  lie  him  out  of  it,  and 
bring  proof  on  all  occasions  that  it  was  just. received 
from  home  by  mail.  After  the  search  was  completed 
and  nothing  recovered,  the  boys  who  were  guilty 
gathered  around  the  sutler  to  sympathize  with  him 
in  his  loss,  which  was,  at  his  estimate,  between  six 
and  seven  thousand  dollars.  Many  of  the  boys, 
while  standing  talking  to  him,  and  swearing  that  the 
perpetrators  of  the  theft  "  ought  to  be  shot,"  "  hung," 
"  cart-whipped,"  &c.,  had  on  the  sutler's  shirts,  socks, 
drawers,  boots,  caps,  vests,  paper  collars,  neck- ties, 
gloves,  &c.,  and  one  man  had  the  impudence  to  stand 
in  front  of  him  eating  pickles  taken  out  of  one  of  his 
glass  jars,  and  holding  an  orange  that  belonged  to 
the  sutler  in  one  of  his  hands.  It  must  not  be 
thought  that  all  the  men  in  the  regiment  were  guilty, 
for  such  were  not  the  case  ;  it  was  only  a  portion  of 
them  that  was  implicated  in  such  villanous  acts,  and 
that  portion  was  bound  to  "clean  a  sutler  out"  at 
every  opportunity. 

About  the  same  time  a  sutler  pitched  his  tent  in 


286     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

an  open  space  some  two  hundred  or  three  hundred 
yards  in  the  rear  of  Gen.  Ferrero's  quarters ;  being 
attached  to  no  particular  regiment  he  could  not 
claim  the  protection  of  any  U.  S.  officers,  and  there 
fore  was  an  independent  concern,  and  carried  on  his 
business  altogether  on  his  own  responsibility  and 
risk.  The  boys  of  the  different  regiments  had 
"  spotted  "  the  man,  and  were  only  waiting  for  him 
"  to  get  in  a  good  supply  "  ere  they  would  ll  rally  on 
him."  After  waiting  patiently  for  a  long  time  the 
"  large  supply  "  at  last  came.  About  10  o'clock  at 
night  the  21st  Mass,  ran  along  the  color  line  of  the 
51st  P.  V.  and  51st  N.  Y.,  yelling,  like  so  many 
demons,  "Fall  in  51st  Penna. !  fall  in!  rally  on  the 
sutler !"  and  in  a  few  moments  the  evil  disposed 
ones  of  the  three  regiments  were  on  their  way  at  a 
double  quick  to  the  tent  of  the  unfortunate  trader. 
He  had  shut  up  for  the  night  and  retired  to  rest, 
but  not  to  sleep.  Soon  he  found  his  tent  coming 
down  all  around  him,  for  the  boys  had  cut  all  the 
ropes.  By  this  time  some  eight  hundred  or  nine 
hundred  men  from  the  various  regiments  had  assem 
bled,  and  the  plundering  became,  general.  Only  a 
few  minutes  sufficed  to  "clean  him  out,"  and  the 
majority  of  them  got  little  or  nothing;  being  dis 
appointed  they  set  his  tent  on  fire.  He  then  ran 
through  the  mob  brandishing  a  couple  of  revolvers, 
threatening  to  shoot  them  if  they  didn't  disperse, 
but  as  they  would  not,  he  fired  several  shots, 
wounding  one  of  the  21st  Mass,  in  the  leg;  this  so 
exasperated  the  men  that  he  had  to  flee  for  his  life, 
and  sought  shelter  in  Gen.  Ferrero's  tent.  The 
general  took  him  under  his  protection  and  dispersed 
the  men  to  their  quarters,  but  ere  the  men  all  got 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  287 

there  Ferrero  "had  dispatched  an  orderly  to  all  the 
colonels  of  his  brigade  with  orders  to  immediately 
form  their  regiments  on  their  respective  color  lines 
and  have  the  rolls  called,  arid  all  absentees  to  be 
reported  to  him  in  the  morning.  It  was  now  mid 
night  and  the  order  was  rigidly  carried  out,  but  the 
culprits  had  all  got  to  their  quarters  in  time  to 
answer  to  their  names,  and  the  guilty  ones  were 
never  found  out.  The  loss  of  this  sutler  was  between 
two  thousand  and  three  thousand  dollars.  He 
gathered  up  the  remnant  of  the  ruins  and  left  for 
parts  unknown. 

On  Friday,  the  2d  of  January,  1863,  Chaplain 
Mallory  received  a  large  box  from  the  "  ladies  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  of  Norristown  "  filled  with  fine 
cakes,  bread,  &c.,  also  a  barrel  of  splendid  apples 
and  onions ;  the  articles  were  divided  into  five 
equal  parts  and  distributed  to  the  five  companies 
from  Montgomery  county,  Pa.  An  extract  from  a 
private  letter  gives  an  idea  hpw  gladly  the  gift 
was  received,  it  says : 

"  The  things  were  shared  out  to  the  five  companies 
from  Norristown,  each  company's  portion  again 
shared  out  to  the  men,  and  it  gave  them  such  a 
feast  as  none,  or  at  least  very  few  of  us,  have  seen 
since  the  day  that  we  left  our  own  m  little  tables  at 
home,  and  you  may  be  sure  we  enjoyed  the  eatables 
with  many  a  fervent  'God  bless  the  ladies  for  their 
kind  consideration  for  us  here.' " 

At  the  same  time  a  large  number  of  boxes  that 
had  been  sent  from  home  by  ''Adams'  Express" 
during  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1862  arrived, 
but  their  contents  were  all  spoiled,  excepting  such 
things  as  tobacco,  segars,  and  liquors,  the  remain- 


238      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

der  were  worthless  ;  but  it  was  only  in  accordance 
with  all  the  other  boxes  expressed  to  the  regiment 
by  that  u  reliable  concern,"  as  they  would  take  all 
the  boxes  offered,  even  when  they  knew  the  men 
would  never  get  them,  or  at  least  until  their  con 
tents  were  damaged. 

Nothing  more  of  interest  occurred  since  the  late 
battle  than  what  has  been  already  related,  excepting 
the  death  of  Q.  M.  Serg.  William  Jones,  who  com 
mitted  suicide  by  shooting  himself  on  the  night 
after  the  regiment  had  returned  from  Fredericks- 
burg.  He  had  been  in  a  depressed  state  of  feeling 
for  several  days  previous  to  his  committing  the  act, 
acting  very  strangely  during  the  absence  of  the 
regiment,  but  none  that  were  left  back  in  camp  ever 
suspected  that  he  contemplated  taking  his  own  life. 
He  was  buried  in  the  rear  of  the  hospital  tent,  and 
a  short  time  thereafter  his  remains  were  disinterred 
and  sent  to  Norristown.  Corp.  Christopher  Wykoff, 
of  Co.  F,  was  promoted  to  fill  the  vacancy  created 
by  his  death. 

Gen.  Burnside  was  now  making  preparations  for 
another  attack  on  Lee  at  Fredericksburg,  and  the 
51st  P.  Y.  received  orders  to  be  ready  to  move  at  a 
moment's  notice,  with  three  days'  cooked  rations  and 
one  hundred  rounds  of  ammunition.  A  few  days 
after  the  orders  had  been  issued,  it  was  found  that 
the  entire  army  was  on  the  move,  but  after  pro 
ceeding  a  short  distance  the  great  depth  of  the  mud 
proved  the  movement  to  be  impracticable.  Wagons, 
artillery,  caissons,  and  everything  on  wheels  became 
so  imbedded  in  the  mire  that  horse  or  mule  power 
was  insufficient  to  move  them,  and  everything 
"stuck  fast  in  the  mud"  for  two  weeks  afterwards. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      289 

The  movement  was  finally  abandoned,  and  the 
troops  returned  to  their  old  quarters  completely 
worn  out  with  the  fatigue  of  wading  through  the 
earthy  mixture  that  appeared  to  be  without  any 
bottom,  such  was  its  great  depth. 

On  the  26th  day  of  January,  1863,  Gen.  Burnside, 
on  leaving  the  army  of  the  Potomac,  took  leave  also 
of  the  9th  Corps  at  the  same  time  ;  when  it  came 
under  Gen.  Sedgewick.  After  Gen.  Burnside  was 
ordered  west  to  the  department  of  the  Ohio,  he  re 
quested  that  his  old  corps  be  transferred  to  his  new 
command ;  and  two  divisions  were  ordered  to  re 
port  to  him.  but  the  3d  Division  was  left  at  Newport 
News. 

Reviews  now  began  to  be  the  order  of  the  day, 
and  every  few  days  the  51st  P.  V.  was  out  for  that 
duty;  but  on  the  7th  day  of  February,  1863,  orders 
were  issued  to  the  51st  P.  V.  to  cook  three  days' 
rations  and  prepare  to  move  on  the  following  day. 

On  Tuesday  morning,  February  9th,  the  regiment 
struck  tents  and  marched  to  the  depot  and  embarked 
on  the  cars  for  Aquia  creek,  where  it  arrived  in  the 
afternoon.  It  then  embarked  on  board  of  a  trans 
port,  and  arrived  at  Newport  News  on  February  llth, 
going  into  camp  near  its  former  camping  ground, 
where  it  lay  until  the  26th  of  March,  1863. 

Nothing  of  especial  interest  occured  at  this  camp ; 
the  regular  routine  of  duty,  such  as  drills,  parades, 
reviews,  guarding,  &c.,  was  attended  to  as  formerly. 
Gen.  Ferrero  and  a  select  company  of  officers  had  a 
ball  on  one  of  the  government  boats,  which  was  at 
tended  by  a  few  of  the  officers  of  the  51st  P.  Y. 

On  the  morning  of  the  25th  March,  Col.  Hartranft 
again  left  for  his  home  on  a  leave  of  absence. 


290     HISTORY  OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

While  lying  here  the  recruiting  officers  and  men 
who  went  home  in  August,  1862,  from  Fredericks- 
burg  to  recruit,  arrived  about  the  1st  of  March,  after 
being  absent  seven  months. 

The  weather  here  was  very  fine,  and  the  officers 
and  men  enjoyed  themselves  much  in  the  innocent 
games  of  cricket  and  base-ball. 

On  the  morning  of  Thursday,  March  26th,  1863, 
at  sunrise,  the  51st  P.  V.  struck  tents  and  embarked 
on  its  tour  to  the  far  west,  on  board  of  the  splendid 
steamboat  Louisiana  for  Baltimore,  where  it  arrived 
'on  Friday  evening,  the  27th.  After  unloading  the 
baggage  the  regiment  marched  to  the  depot  of  the 
Northern  Central  Eailroad,  where  it  arrived  at  11 
o'clock  at  night ;  but  as  it  could  not  get  away  before 
1  o'clock  of  the  morning  of  the  28th,  the  men  took 
a  stroll  through  the  city.  Everywhere  they  went 
they  were  treated  with  the  utmost  hospitality  ;  owing 
to  the  fact  that  the  boys  all  knew  the  2d  Maryland 
Eegiment,  which  appeared  to  be  a  kind  of  a  pet 
regiment  of  the  Baltimoreans.  Many  of  them  got 
drunk  and  became  riotous,  but  the  charm  of  know 
ing  the  2d  Maryland,  saved  many  of  them  from  the 
lock-up ;  others  not  so  fortunate  brought  up  at  Fort 
McHenry,  as  deserters,  &c.,  and  did  not  get  released 
for  a  long  time  after  the  regiment  arrived  at  its  des 
tination. 

At  1  A.  M.,  of  the  28th,  the  cars  were  ready, 
and  what  there  was  left  of  the  regiment  embarked 
once  more.  About  10  A.  M.,  it  arrived  at  Little 
York,  Pa.,  where  the  citizens  had  coffee  ready 
made  and  gave  them  a  good  breakfast,  but  here,  as 
in  Baltimore,  a  few  more  got  left  behind,  but  suc 
ceeded  in  overtaking  the  regiment  at  Marysville, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      291 

above  Harrisburg,  by  jumping  on  the  express  train. 
At  sundown  of  the  same  clay  it  arrived  at  Bridge 
port,  opposite  Harrisburg,  but  it  only  remained  here 
a  few  minutes ;  but  in  those  few  minutes  a  large 
number  jumped  off  the  train  with  the  view  of  going 
home,  and  did  not  return  until  arrested  as  deserters 
or  found  that  they  would  be  if  they  did  not  rejoin 
their  regiment  as  soon  as  possible. 

At  midnight  the  train  arrived  at  Altoona,  on  the 
Pennsylvania  Central  road.  Coffee  and  whiskey 
was  served  up  here  in  abundance.  After  stopping 
there  about  an  hour  the  train  again  started  for  Pitts- 
burg,  where  it  arrived  after  crossing  the  Alleghany 
mountains,  on  Sunday  morning,  March  the  29th,  at 
daylight.  Here  the  regiment  was  treated  to  a  hand 
some  collation  in  the  City  Hall,  by  the  citizens. 
The  regiment  was  received  in  a  spirited  speech  by 
Maj.  McCook,  a  brother  of  the  heroic  family  of 
McCooks.  After  the  collation  was  over  the  citizens 
separately  took  the  soldiers  under  their  charge,  and 
long  before  night  a  large  number  of  them  were 
"  laid  up  on  the  platform  of  the  car  depot,"  being 
too  feeble  to  support  themselves  on  their  legs. 

Although  whiskey  flowed  as  freely  as  water,  and  a 
large  number  became  very  drunk,  yet  all  behaved 
themselves  with  propriety  and  decorum.  The  offi 
cers  allowed  the  men  free  scope  as  long  as  they  be 
haved  themselves  properly,  and  very  few  of  them 
gave  their  officers  any  trouble. 

It  was  8  p.  M  ,  of  Sunday,  before  the  regiment 
could  get  away  from  Pittsburg,  but  at  that  time  cars 
for  Cincinnati  arrived,  and  the  regiment  left  for  Co 
lumbus,  Ohio,  where  it  arrived  at  3  o'clock  p.  M.,  of 
Monday,  the  30th.  The  citizens  of  this  beautiful 


292     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

city  furnished  the  men  with  a  sumptuous  feast  of 
coffee,  cakes,  boiled  eggs,  ham,  bread  and  butter, 
and  other  things,  to  satisfy  the  inner  man.  Every 
thing  passed  off  very  harmoniously  until  within  a 
few  minutes  of  the  time  for  starting,  when  a  few  of 
the  men  of  the  51st  P.  V.,  21st  Mass.,  and  the  51st 
N.  Y.  wished  to  take  a  stroll  through  the  city,  for 
a  few  minutes,  to  see  it,  but  they  had  only  proceeded 
a  few  yards  when  they  were  halted  by  the  provost- 
guards  of  that  city,  and  were  not  allowed  to  proceed 
any  farther,  as  they  had  no  pass;  but  the  men  seized 
the  guns  of  the  guards  and  threw  them  over  a  brick 
wall  into  a  private  yard,  and  as  they  were  equal  a 
fight  took  place,  and  the  guards  were  getting  the 
worst  of  it  when  another  squad  of  guards  came  to 
their  assistance  and  fired  on  the  visiting  men,  killing 
one  of  Co.  A's  men  and  wounding  three  of  the  21st 
Mass.  The  men  now  rushed  frantically  to  the  cars 
to  get  their  muskets,  with  a  full  determination  of 
wreaking  vengeance  on  their  assailants,  but  the  offi 
cers'  coolness  in  the  matter  prevented  them  from 
getting  their  guns  and  also  prevented  what  was  in  a 
fair  way  of  becoming  a  terrible  riot.  As  it  was,  the 
officers  had  considerable  difficulty  in  getting  the 
men  to  leave  the  ground  and  get  on  the  cars,  not,  how 
ever,  until  several  of  the  guards  had  been  knocked 
down  by  stones  and  bricks  that  were  hurled  at  them 
by  the  exasperated  men.  The  lieutenant  in  charge  of 
the  guards  had  formed  his  men  in  line  of  battle  on  the 
sidewalk  facing  the  railroad,  and  as  the  stones  and 
other  missiles  were  hurled  at  them  they  would  raise 
up  their  guns  to  fire  ;  the  lieutenant  would  run  along 
the  line  and  knock  up  the  muzzles  and  beg  them  for 
"  God:s  sake,  don't  fire  ;  "  though  that  was  just  what 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.      293 

our  boys  wanted  them  to  do,  for  then  they  would 
have  disregarded  all  their  officers'  commands  and 
entreaties,  and  seizing  their  guns  would  have  anni 
hilated  the  whole  provost  guards  force.  Col.  Clark, 
of  the  21st  Mass.,  now  took  the  whole  matter  in 
hand  and  promised  the  lieutenant  of  the  guards  that 
he  should  hear  from  him  again.  Capt.  Joseph  K. 
Bolton  took  an  active  part  in  trying  to  quell  the  dis 
turbance,  so  that  he  could  investigate  the  manner 
and  cause  of  the  death  of  the  member  of  bis  com 
pany,  but  the  whistle  of  the  train  blew  for  "  all 
aboard  "  before  the  true  state  of  the  case  could  be 
found  out.  and  he  was  forced  to  forego  his  humane 
intentions. 

The  men  once  more  on  the  train  it  started  while 
angry  words  were  passing  between  the  two  conflict 
ing  parties.  Had  not  the  citizens  interfered  on  be 
half  of  the  stranger  regime,  ts  the  riot  would  not 
have  passed  off  as  quickly  as  it  did,  but  the  citizens 
unanimously  decided  the  guards  to  be  the  aggres 
sors,  and  the  boys  did  not  wish  to  harm  or  destroy 
anything  belonging  to  them,  as  they  had  been  treated 
kindly  by  all  excepting  the  guards,  who  were  de 
ficient  in  their  duties,  being  raw  recruits  and  pre 
suming  to  exercise  more  power  than  they  possessed. 


294     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT. 


CHAPTEE   II. 

Cincinnati — Generous  reception — Paris,  Ky. — Mt.  Sterling — 
Winchester — Hickman's  Bridge — Lancaster — Negro  life  and 
peculiarities — Crab  Orchard — Stanford — Correspondence. 

THE  regiment  arrived  in  Cincinnati  early  on 
Tuesday  morning,  the  31st  of  March.  Almost  as 
soon  as  the  regiment  arrived  at  Cincinnati  a  com 
mittee  of  the  citizens  waited  on  Lieut.  Col.  Schall, 
tendering  to  him  and  his  regiment  a  collation  that 
was  prepared  for  them  at  the  Fifth  street  market. 
If  the  hospitalities  of  the  citizens  of  Maryland  and 
Pennsylvania  were  generous,  those  of  the  Queen 
city  were  trebly  so,  for,  not  satisfied  with  giving  the 
troops  a  splendid  breakfast,  the  citizens  took  the 
men  into  their  private  dwellings  and  emptied  their 
haversacks  of  the  hard-tack  and  pork,  and  filled 
them  with  roast  turkeys,  chickens,  ducks,  beef,  cakes, 
pies,  bread  and  butter,  oranges,  lemons,  apples,  pre 
serves,  and  in  fact  everything  that  they  thought  a 
soldier  could  possibly  wish  for.  The  canteens  were 
filled  with  brandies,  wines,  milk,  nectar,  and  all 
other  kind  of  drinks  at  hand.  Money  in  no  small 
amounts  was  slipped  into  their  hands,  and  after  all 
had  been  done  to  please  the  men  they  begged  of  the 
soldiers  only  to  mention  something  else  that  they 
wanted ;  but  where  so  much  was  given  it  was  hard 
to  think  of  anything  else  that  was  needed ;  and  the 
regiment  left  the  city  never  to  forget  its  kindness, 
nor  should  it  ever  be  forgotten  by  any  man  of  the 
51st  P.  V. 

After  leaving  the  market  the  regiment  marched 
through  the  city  and  halted  in  front  of  the  Burnet 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      295 

House,  where  Glen.  Burnside  bad  bis  headquarters ; 
tbe  hero  came  out  on  the  balcony  and  made  an  ap 
propriate  speech  to  the  men,  after  which  the  regi 
ment  marched  to  the  ferr j  and  crossed  the  Ohio  river 
to  Covington,  Ky.  Late  in  the  evening  they  em 
barked  on  tbe  cars  of  the  Kentucky  Central  Railroad 
for  Paris,  Ky.,  where  it  arrived  early  in  the  morning 
of  the  1st  of  April,  1863. 

The  regiment  encamped  on  the  fair  grounds  about 
half  a  mile  from  the  town,  and  during  that  night  was 
done  some  sound  sleeping,  as  neither  officers  nor  men 
had  had  one  hour's  sleep  since  the  night  of  the  25th 
of  March,  before  they  left  Newport  News,  Va.,  and  if 
a  regiment  ever  was  grateful  for  an  hour's  rest  from 
the  fatigues  of  so  long  a  march,  attended  with  so 
much  excitement,  the  51st  P.  V.  was  for  this,  their 
first  sleep  for  a  whole  week.  The  next  day  was  spent 
in  fixing  up  the  camp,  and  resting  from  their  long- 
journey.  At  night  a  large  number  of  officers  and 
men  visited  the  town  of  Paris  as,  also,  did  a  number 
of  the  48th  P.  V.  They  were  not  long  in  the  town 
when  Capt.  Nicholas,  of  Co.  B.  was  assailed  by  some 
Kentucky  secesh  scoundrels,  and  somewhat  of  a 
riot  was  about  to  break  out,  when  the  officers  of  the 
48th  P.  V.  not  understanding  the  cause  of  the  quarrel, 
"pitched  in"  and  Nicholas  came  off  second  best,  with 
a  swelled  eye  or  two,  but  the  mistake  was  discovered 
in  time  and  order  was  soon  restored;  the  spunky  little 
captain  having  been  determined  to  allow  none  of  the 
chivalry  to  advocate  secession  within  his  hearing. 

On  Saturday,  April  4th,  at  daylight,  the  51st  P.  V. 
struck  tents  and  left  Paris  for  Mount  Sterling,  Mont 
gomery  county,  Ky.,  where  it  arrived  late  at  night 
and  completely  worn  out  with  fatigue,  having 


296     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

marched  twenty- three  miles  in  a  blinding  snow  storm, 
and  over  a  hard  turnpike  road.  Towards  noon  it 
became  evident  to  Col.  Schall  that  if  some  way  to 
.get  the  men's  knapsacks  hauled  was  not  adopted  his 
regiment  could  not  reach  its  destination  that  night, 
he  therefore  issued  orders  to  the  men  to  press  into 
service  any  teams  that  could  be  found  on  the  line  of 
march.  It  was  not  long  before  the  boys  found  teams 
enough  to  haul  everything  that  was  cumbersome  to 
carry,  and  by  that  means  the  regiment  reached  Mt. 
Sterling  at  8  J  P.  M.,  and  bivouacked  close  to  the  road 
for  the  night.  Soon  after  the  men  had  lain  down  to 
sleep  an  order  came  in  for  thirty  of  them  to  be  de 
tailed  for  picket.  It  was  amusing  to  hear  the  orderly 
sergeants  calling  off  the  names  of  those  whose  turn 
came  for  duty,  not  more  than  one  out  of  a  dozen 
would  answer,  and  yet  the  sergeants  knew  the  men 
were  there,  but  it  was  so  dark  that  they  could  not 
find  them  ;  after  calling  the  entire  roll  they  began  to 
pull  the  blankets  down  from  the  men's  heads,  and 
peep  into  their  faces  until  they  found  the  right  ones, 
then  some  swearing  would  be  done,  all  kinds  of  ex 
cuses  framed,  "sickness,"  "  sore  feet,"  "  too  tired,"  ''  not 
my  turn,"  &c,  but  the  sergeants  were  inexorable  and 
out  they  had  to  go  cold  and  wet,  tired  and  hungry. 

Next  morning  the  regiment  passed  through  the 
town  and  went  into  camp  about  one  mile  from  it. 
In  passing  through  the  town  a  few  families  who  were 
undoubtedly  loyal,  welcomed  the  51st  P.  Y.  with 
tearful  eyes,  and  expressing  their  gratitude  in  catch 
ing  the  men  by  their  hands  and  giving  them  a  hearty 
shake,  adding  at  the  same  time,  "We  are  so  glad  to 
see  you,  my  dear  friends,"  and  such  like  expressions. 
Their  tales  of  sorrow  nnd  of  nil  their  sufferings  at 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      297 

the  hands  of  the  rebel  guerrillas  were  hurriedly  told, 
and  they  were  too  happy  in  seeing  some  sign  of  protec 
tion  afforded  them,  but  alas!  it  was  only  of  short  du 
ration,  for  in  a  few  days  all  the  Union  troops  were 
withdrawn  from  that  neighborhood,  and  the  gue 
rillas  came  pouncing  on  them  the  very  first  night 
after  our  departure,  and  plundered  them  of  every 
thing  movable,  taking  every  horse  belonging  to 
citizens  who  were  in  the  least  tainted  with  loyalty. 

On  Sunday  morning,  the  5th,  the  pickets  came  in 
with  five  guerillas  they  had  taken  during  the  night ; 
on  the  Tuesday  following  they  captured  seven  more. 

One  feature  in  social  life  among  the  Kentuckians 
was  noticed  by  the  Northern  soldiers,  viz.,  that  the 
women  did  all  their  journeying  on  horseback;  if 
they  had  only  a  fourth  of  a- mile  to  go  it  must  be 
done  on  a  horse,  even  children  would  go  on  horse 
back,  and  frequently  as  many  as  three  little  ones  who 
were  scarcely  able  to  walk,  would  be  seen  sitting 
astride  of  a  single  horse  going  to  school;  after  get 
ting  there  the  horse  would  be  turned  loose  to  graze 
until  school  was  dismissed,  then  the  little  fellows 
would,  by  the  help  of  the  larger  ones,  remount  and 
ride  home  in  perfect  safety. 

While  lying  at  Mt.  Sterling,  Capt.  J.  Merrill  Linn 
was  made  Provost  Marshal  of  the  town,  and  com 
pany  H  was  detailed  for  provost  guards. 

On  the  7th  Col.  Hartranft  arrived  from  his  home ; 
also  several  other  officers  who  had  been  absent 
through  wounds  or  sickness.  At  the  same  time  was 
brought  a  splendid  sword  for  Capt.  G.  W.  Bisbing 
of  Co.  I,  a  present  from  his  friends  in  Upper  Merion 
in  consideration  of  his  bravery,  and  to  replace  the 
one  broken  at  Antietarn  by  a  fragment  of  an  ex- 

14  ' 


298     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

ploded  shell.  While  at  this  camp  the  paymaster 
visited  it  and  gave  them,  on  the  14th,  four  months' 
pay.  The  men  now  having  plenty  of  money,  and 
luxuries  very  cheap,  they  lived  like  princes.  Eggs 
were  10  cents  per  dozen ;  flour,  $4.50  to  $5  per 
bbl;  chickens,  $1.50  per  dozen  ;  largest  size  turkeys, 
40  cents;  maple  sugar,  10  cents  per  cake  of  1J  Ibs.; 
large  pies,  10  cents  apiece,  and  everything  else  in 
proportion.  But  it  was  not  long  before  the  citizens 
got  Yankeeized  and  raised  the  prices  to  50  cents  per 
dozen  for  eggs,  and  all  other  articles  at  the  same  rate, 
they  becoming  Yankeeized  in  a  very  short  time. 

The  regiment  left  Mt.  Sterling  on  the  17th  for 
Winchester,  Ky.,  at  1.30  A.  M.  At  8  A.  M.  it  halted 
for  breakfast,  and  after  partaking  of  a  hearty  meal 
it  proceeded  on  its  march  to  Winchester,  where  it 
arrived  at  sundown,  making  the  march  of  thirty-two 
miles  in  one  day;  but  one-half  of  the  men  were  left 
along  the  road,  unable  to  get  on  any  farther,  from 
fatigue  and  being  overloaded  with  heavy  knapsacks. 
After  getting  in  camp  about  two  miles  from  the 
town,  two  companies,  C  and  H,  under  Capt.  Alle- 
baugh,  were  detailed  for  Provost  Guard  duty  at  the 
latter  place.  Co.  I  was  detailed  to  take  charge  of 
the  ferry  at  Boonesboro  on  the  Kentucky  river,  ten 
miles  from  Winchester. 

On  the  14th  of  April  Capt.  E.  Schall,  of  Co.  D,  re 
signed  his  commission  and  left  for  home.  His  com 
pany  escorted  him  into  town,  and  presented  him  at  an 
other  time  with  a  splendid  gold  medal,  inscribed  on  it, 
"  Presented  to  Capt.  Edward  Schall  by  the  members 
of  Co.  D,  51st  Begt.  Pa.  Vols.,  as  a  token  of  their 
love  and  confidence.  Stanford,  Ky.,  May  28,  1863. 
Roanoke,  Newbern,  Camden,  Bull  Run,  Chantilly, 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEKS.  299 

South  Mountain,  Antietam,  Sulphur  Springs,  Fred- 
ericksburg."  He  bade  them  all  an  affectionate  fare 
well,  and  parted  from  his  men  with  a  heart  too  full 
for  utterance.  He  was  beloved  by  the  whole  regi 
ment,  and  his  departure  drew  tears  from  many  a 
stout  heart  in  other  companies  besides  his  own. 

On  the  1st  of  May,  1863,  the  different  companies 
that  were  away  on  special  duty  returned  to  camp 
near  Winchester,  and  prepared  to  leave,  which  it  did 
on  the  4th,  for  Lancaster,  Ky.;  where  it  arrived  on 
the  9th  of  May. 

On  the  night  of  the  first  day's  march  it  encamped 
in  one  of  the  heaviest  rains  that  ever  fell  in  Ken 
tucky.  The  ground  was  under  water  most  of  the 
night  to  the  depth  of  four  or  five  inches ;  but  in  fact 
this  march  was  altogether  in  a  rain,  for  it  was  a  con 
tinuous  one  for  eight  days  and  nights.  On  the  night 
of  the  third  day's  march  the  regiment  encamped  on 
a  farm  owned  by  a  most  violent  "secesh."  The  boys 
had  found  a  case  of  guns  buried  on  his  place  not  far 
from  his  house.  He  denied  knowing  anything  about 
them,  but  his  colored  men  declared  that  he  and  his 
sons  buried  the  guns  on  the  approach  of  the  regi 
ment.  For  this  piece  of  loyalty  the  boys  were  not 
in  the  least  sparing  of  his  fences.  This  place  is  near 
Lexington. 

The  fourth  day's  march  put  the  regiment  across 
Hickman's  Bridge,  over  the  Kentucky  river.  It 
went  into  camp  about  one  mile  beyond,  on  a  rocky 
hill  a  short  distance  from  the  turnpike. 

The  rain  and  darkness  of  this  night  bafnes  de 
scription.  Shelter  tents  were  of  very  little  use,  if 
any,  as  a  protection,  for  the  heavy  drops  beat  through 
the  tent  cloth  as  if  it  was  a  collander,  and  the  men 


300     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIKST  REGIMENT 

got  up  in  the  morning  as  wet  as  when  they  lay  down. 
The  wagon  train  belonging  to  the  brigade,  which  was 
intended  to  accompany  the  regiment,  did  not  get  into 
park  until  late  at  night.  Next  day  the  regiment  did 
not  start  until  8  A.  M.;  passing  through  Lancaster, 
Ky  ,  it  halted  for  a  long  rest  about  one  mile  to  the 
left  of  the  town,  on  the  road  to  Lovetts,  a  small 
town  eight  miles  distant.  This  was  to  be  the  end 
of  the  march,  but  Col.  Schall  received  orders  to  pro 
ceed  to  Lovetts  at  once,  and  the  regiment  pushed 
on  and  reached  the  designated  place  at  5  P.  M.  of 
Saturday,  May  9th.  While  lying  here  a  large  batch 
of  furloughs  came  in,  but  were  only  signed  for  ten 
days,  though  twenty  days  were  asked  for.  The 
twenty  days  had  received  Col.  Schall's  signature, 
Col.  Hartranft's  and  Gen.  Sturgis's,  but  when  they 
reached  Gen.  O.  B.  Wilcox  he  cut  them  down  to  ten 
days.  The  anger  of  the  furloughed  men  knew  no 
bounds,  and  some  refused  to  receive  their  furloughs 
for  so  short  a  time,  as  it  would  take  nearly  the  ten 
days  to  get  home  and  return.  Those  who  did  go 
did  not  return  until  the  18th  day. 

On  Sunday  morning,  the  10th,  orders  came  in  be 
fore  daylight  for  the  regiment  to  return  immediately 
to  Lancaster,  and  by  sunrise  the  column  was  on  its 
way  there,  where  it  arrived  at  11  A.  M.  and  encamped. 

On  the  14th  orders  were  issued  to  be  ready  to 
move  at  a  moment's  notice,  with  three  days'  cooked 
rations  and  sixty  rounds  of  ammunition  to  each 
man,  to  proceed  to  Somerset,  Ky.,  to  head  off  Mor 
gan  in  his  contemplated  raid  on  either  Louisville  or 
Lexington. 

On  Monday,  the  18th,  the  regiment  moved  camp 
to  a  more  eligible  location,  but  scarcely  had  the  last 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      301 

tent  been  pinned  down  than  the  order  to  be  ready 
to  move,  &c.,  was  renewed,  but  like  the  original  one 
it  did  not  take  the  regiment  off'.  The  men  kept  in 
good  spirits,  and  hoped  that  the  order  would  be 
countermanded,  as  both  officers  and  men  enjoyed 
themselves  hugely  by  playing  at  base  ball  in  day 
time  between  drill  hours  and  at  night  by  the  per 
formance  of  genuine  negro  minstrels,  who  were  the 
field  hands  belonging  to  the  neighboring  plantations. 
Their  mode  of  performing  and  style  of  dress  was 
certainly  very  interesting.  Ten  or  twelve  would 
form  a  circle  in  one  of  the  company  streets  and  the 
oldest  negro  of  the  party  would  seat  himself  on  a 
cracker  box  in  the  centre  of  the  circle,  armed  with 
a  violin,  banjo,  guitar  or  tamborine,  and  direct 
affairs  to  suit  his  own  original  notions,  which  would 
generally  be  of  a  most  ludicrous  character.  He 
would  compose  the  greater  part  of  his  melodies  as 
he  sung  them,  and  accompany  himself  on  whatever 
instrument  he  had  with  him.  But  his  songs  were 
of  a  childish  nonsense,  meaningless,  and  his  com 
panions  would  set  up  a  howl  for  a  chorus  that  was 
truly  laughable.  Sometimes  they  sang  songs  of 
what  might  be  properly  called  serio-comico-patri- 
otic,  of  which  a  verse  or  two  will  give  an  idea : 

"  Ingin  rubber  overcoat, 

Gum  elastic  shoes, 
John  Morgan  on  the  telegraph, 
Trying  to  read  the  news. 

"  Fare  you  well  !  fare  you  well ! 
Hippa  loo  !  hippa  loo  di  doodle  doo. 

"  Jeff  Davis  built  a  breastwork, 

And  built  it  out  of  trash, 
'Long  come  de  Lincomnites 
And  knocked  it  all  to  smash. 
CHOIIUS — "Hippa  loo,  &c." 


302      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

The  above  is  a  fair  sample  of  their  favorite  songs. 
How  many  verses  it  contains  would  be  hard  to  say, 
for  they  could  sing  it  for  an  hour  and  not  repeat 
a  verse ;  nor  would  they  be  done  the  song  then,  but 
would  cease  singing  simply  because  they  tired  of  it. 
Their  dancing  was  truly  wonderful,  surpassing  any 
thing  ever  exhibited  by  Carncross  &  Dixey  or  any 
"  pale-faced"  Ethiopian  band  of  minstrels.  The  men 
of  the  51st  would  erect  a  platform  of  boards  for  a 
dancing  stage,  and  after  a  long  consultation  among 
the  dancers  two  or  four  would  be  selected  as  the 
champions.  Divesting  themselves  of  nearly  all  their 
clothing  they  would  "  go  down  to  it "  with  a  hearty 
will,  and  dance  their  "break-downs"  for  an  hour, 
and  only  quit  because  one  of  their  number  would 
put  in  an  "  extra  step  "  against  which  some  one 
would  remonstrate.  As  for  quitting  through  fa 
tigue  or  heat  it  was  absurd  to  think  of  it,  for  they 
took  so  much  pnde  in  dancing  that  they  would 
sooner  drop  or  die  than  to  give  it  up  for  so  trifling 
a  cause  as  fatigue  ! 

But  the  most  amusing  thing  was  to  see  them  open 
their  eyes  and  mouths  when  one  of  the  regiment 
sang  for  their  entertainment  the  "Lincum  Gum- 
boats,"  which,  at  its  conclusion,  they  pronounced 
"  one  ob  de  berry  best  songs  that  was  eber  sung  in 
old  Kaintuck." 

This  amusement  continued  nightly  while  the  regi 
ment  lay  in  camp  near  Lancaster.  An  extract  from 
a  private  letter  gives  an  idea  of  how  the  boys  appre 
ciated  it,  viz.:  "I  wish  you  were  here  in  our  camp 
at  nights,  for  we  have  the  true  Simon-pure  "Ken 
tucky  Minstrels"  performing  nightly.  Generally, 
eight  or  ten  of  the  plantation  darkeys  in  their  gro- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  303 

tesque  dress,  and  with  their  violins,  tambos,  banjos 
and  guitars.  They  sing  their  melodies  and  dance 
for  us  from  sundown  till  midnight,  and  it  is  dancing 
too,  for  what  negro  is  down  here  that  can't  dance  ?  " 

It  was  here  at  this  camp  that  the  regiment  had  a 
correspondent  who  wrote  regularly  once  a  week  to 
a  newspaper  published  in  Norristown,  Pa.,  "  The 
National  Defender"  of  which  Col.  Edwin  Schall  was 
the  proprietor,  giving  the  doings  of  the  regiment 
from  the  writing  of  one  letter  to  that  of  another,  up 
to  the  time  of  Col.  Schall's  death,  when  the  paper 
fell  into  other  hands,  and  the  intercourse  was  trans 
ferred  to  the  ''Herald  and  Republican.'1''  Casual 
letters  from  the  regiment  appeared  in  another  paper, 
the  " Independent"  but  any  and  all  of  the  correspon 
dence  was  highly  appreciated  at  home  on  account 
of  neglect  in  the  men  to  write  to  their  friends  and 
their  homes. 

One  letter  by  a  correspondent  in  the  regiment  to 
a  Lewisburg  paper  came  very  near  creating  a  melee 
between  the  51st  P.  V.  and  the  9th  New  York,  (Haw- 
kin's  Zouaves)  this  correspondent  stating  that  the 
9th  New  York  was  lying  behind  the  hospital  like 
"shysters,"  while  the  51st  did  the  fighting  for  them. 

How  true  the  accusation  was,  it  is  impossible  to 
say,  but  it  was  reported  that  while  the  51st  was  in 
the  said  battle,  one  or  two  knapsacks  belonging  to 
the  men  were  robbed,  but  by  whom  it  is  hard  to 
say.  It  surely  could  not  have  been  done  by  the 
Zouaves,  for  they  went  into  the  fight  shortly  after 
the  51st  opened  the  battle.  The  robbery  was  more 
likely  to  have  been  committed,  if  any  were  robbed, 
by  a  few  stragglers  and  shirkers  who  congregated 


304     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

around  the  hospital  as  soon  as  the  enemy  fired  their 
first  solid  shot. 

On  Saturday,  the  25th,  the  orders  previously 
issued  to  be  ready  to  move,  were  carried  out ;  the 
regiment  left  the  camp  near  Lancaster,  Ky.,  ostensi 
bly  with  the  view  to  reinforce  our  troops  at  Cumber 
land  Gap;  but,  after  marching  nine  miles,  it  was 
halted  by  a  courier,  who  brought  in  word  that  we 
were  not  wanted  out  there,  as  our  army  had  defeated 
the  enemy,  and  were  in  possession  of  the  Gap.  The 
regiment  went  into  camp  within  a  short  distance  of 
a  small  village  called  Crab  Orchard.  This  short 
march  of  nine  miles  was  a  most  trying  one  ;  the  heat 
was  intense,  the  turnpike  dry,  the  clouds  of  dust 
were  so  dense  that  a  man  could  not  distinguish  his 
file-leader,  and  suffocation  seemed  inevitable ;  no 
water  to  be  had ;  springs  and  creeks  were  all  dried 
up  along  the  whole  route.  The  suffering  for  water 
was  beyond  describing.  So  great  was  the  thirst  of 
some  of  the  men,  that  they  left  the  ranks,  and  wan 
dered  four  to  six  miles  in  search  of  water,  but  ob 
tained  none  until  noon. 

On  Sunday  morning,  the  26th,  the  regiment  re 
ceived  orders  again  to  push  on  to  the  Gap ;  but  just 
as  the  regiment  was  moving  in  column,  the  order 
was  countermanded,  and  it  moved  across  the  turn 
pike,  and  again  pitched  its  tents,  fully  expecting  to 
stay  there  at  least  a  week  ;  but  no,  for  early  on  Mon 
day  morning,  orders  came  again  to  push  forward 
with  alacrity,  which  it  did,  but  only  for  a  few  .miles, 
when  the  regiment  again  halted,  and  again  went 
into  camp  about  one  mile  beyond  Crab  Orchard,  and 
was  informed  that  it  would  lie  there  for  three  or 
four  days;  but,  at  4  p.  M.,  orders  were  issued  to 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      305 

again  be  ready  to  leave  at  7  o'clock  in  the  evening 
for  a  night's  march  to  Stanford.  Morgan  was 
threatening  a  raid  on  that  town,  and  hence  the  move. 
At  7  P.  M.  the  regiment  started.  Lieut.  M.  R.  Sup- 
plee  and  Lieut.  Wm.  F.  Campbell  had  command  of 
the  rear-guard,  and  arrived  at  Stanford  a  little  be 
fore  daybreak.  This  march  was  accomplished  with 
very  little  fatigue.  The  night  was  clear  and  cool ; 
the  moon  shed  its  bright,  silver-like  rays;  water  was 
everywhere  plenty,  and  of  an  excellent  quality.  The 
rations  while  in  this  part  of  Kentucky  were  very 
meagre,  and  of  an  inferior  quality ;  the  meat  was 
smoked  flitch,  which  would  have  been  acceptable 
had  it  been  sweet;  but  it  was  unfit  to  eat,  being  so 
very  rancid  that  none  of  the  men  would  keep  it 
either  in  their  tents  or  haversacks.  But  better 
rations  were  promised  in  the  future,  as  Crab  Orchard 
was  to  be  made  the  commissary  post  for  the  Ten 
nessee  army. 

On  the  27th  of  May,  the  officers  and  men  who 
had  received  a  ten  days'  leave  of  absence  and  fur 
loughs,  returned  to  the  regiment,  being  absent  eigh 
teen  days  instead  of  ten.  As  each  one  returned,  his 
arrival  was  hailed  with  interest  and  delight,  for  all 
were  bearers  of  some  little  nicety  from  home  to  the 
absent  ones.  Even  the  few  days  that  those  soldiers 
were  home  was  sufficient  to  change  their  complexion 
from  a  swarthy  brown  to  nearly  white,  and  the  men 
in  the  regiment,  for  the  first  time,  began  to  find  out 
that  they  were  nearly  black  from  sunburn  and  ex 
posure.  But  such  was  the  fact,  that  the  whitest  of 
them  was  darker  than  the  darkest  mulatto.  One 
thing  at  this  camp  made  it  very  acceptable  to  all  the 
troops  encamped  at  this  post,  and  that  was  the  op- 

U* 


306     HISTORY   OF  THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

portunity  of  buying  newspapers  only  one  day  old. 
The  line  of  communication  from  Covington,  Ky.,  and 
Cincinnati,  O.,  was  now  uninterrupted  to  this  place, 
and  the  Cincinnati  dailies  found  their  way  to  the 
51st's  camp,  and  sold  readily  at  ten  cents  per  copy. 
But  the  mails  from  the  North  and  Bast  were  very 
irregular  and  uncertain,  and  the  facilities  for  convey 
ing  the  mails  from  Nicholasville  (the  terminus  of 
the  Kentucky  Central  Railroad)  to  this  place,  a 
distance  of  only  thirty-six  miles,  were  not  of  the 
first  order.  Stages  ran  from  here  to  Nicholasville 
twice  a  week,  but  were  not  trusted  to  carry  the  mail, 
as  that  was  only  done  by  the  military  authorities ; 
but  it  was  a  great  convenience  to  the  soldiers  going 
and  returning  on  furloughs.  The  fare  was  highly 
exorbitant,  being  $2.50  for  the  thirty-six  miles. 
The  mails  from  the  army  were  quite  as  irregular,  if 
judged  by  a  paragraph  copied  from  the  "National 
Defender,"  of  June  23d,  1863,  a  paper  published  in 
Norristown,  Pa.,  in  which  it  says : 

"The  latest  intelligence  we  have  from  the  51st 
regiment  is  that  they  are  stationed  at  Memphis  in 
Tennessee.  This  place  is  said  to  be  three  hundred 
and  ninety  miles  from  Vicksburg,  where  Grant  is  at 
work.  It  was  repor  ed  that  the  regiment  had  gone 
there,  but  such  were  not  the  facts  at  the  latest  dates. 
An  engine  boiler  blew  up  as  they  were  going  down, 
but  none  of  the  men  of  the  51st  were  injured,  al 
though  three  rnen  of  other  regiments  were  reported 
killed  by  the  accident." 

The  mails  must  have  been  sadly  out  of  order  if  the 
above  was  the  "  latest  intelligence."  The  regiment 
never  was  stationed  at  Memphis.  It  lay  over  for  a 
few  hours  at  that  place  while  on  its  way  to  Vicks- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  307 

burg,  and  no  doubt  the  "latest"  had  its  origin  from 
that  fact.  There  were  delays  in  the  mails  for  the 
"Defender's'11  correspondent.  "T.  H.  P."  dated  his 
communication  from  Cairo,  111.,  June  8th,  and  it  did 
not  appear  in  the  printed  form  till  July  21st,  1863. 
This  letter  gives  a  detailed  account  of  the  doings  of 
the  regiment  from  June  1st,  1863,  up  to  the  writing 
of  it,  as  given  below : 

ON  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  OHIO  RIVER, 
CAIRO,  ILLINOIS,  June  8th,  1868. 

Having  a  few  moments  to  spare,  while  we  are  waiting  for 
transportation  from  this,  I  will  tell  you  what  the  51st  P.  V.  has 
been  doing  since  I  last  wrote  you.  On  Monday  afternoon,  1st 
inst.,  while  on  dress  parade,  it  was  announced  to  the  regiment 
that  Q.  M.  Serg't  Samuel  P.  Stephens  had  received  a  first  lieu 
tenant's  commission  from  Gov.  Curtin,  and  was  thereby  pro 
moted  to  regimental  quarter-master  of  the  51st.  In  this  pro 
motion  there  was  considerable  sagacity  displayed  by  our  Union 
loving  governor,  for  no  man  knows  the  duties  better  of  that 
important  and  highly  responsible  post  than  the  present  incum 
bent.  He  has  proven  himself  a  faithful  officer  in  the  nearly  two 
years  of  his  connection  with  that  Department.  It  was  also 
announced  at  the  same  time  and  place  that  all  officers1  baggage 
-<vas  to  be  reduced  to  thirty  pounds  to  each  officer  ;  and  that  the 
enlisted  men  were  to  pack  up  all  surplus  clothing  on  the  next 
day  in  boxes  to  be  sent  to  Hickman's  Bridge,  on  the  Ken 
tucky  river,  they  only  to  reserve  a  change  of  underclothing  ; 
and  we  were  further  ordered  to  carry  three  days'  rations  in  our 
haversacks  and  five  in  our  knapsacks.  On  Tuesday,  2d  inst., 
early  in  the  forenoon,  the  camp  was  alive  with  "hurry  and 
bustle,"  being  a  busy  day  for  both  officers  and  men  in  packing 
and  sending  off  all  surplus  baggage,  as  per  order,  and  also  of 
the  sending  to  Lexington  of  forty-eight  rebel  prisoners  who  had 
been  captured  by  our  forces  near  Cumberland  Gap.  While  the 
boys  were  busy  boxing  up  their  goods,  a  few  that  were  idle  for 
the  time  being,  started  off  on  a  raccoon  hunt.  They  had  been 
gone  but  a  few  minutes,  when  we  were  surprised  to  see  them, 
coming  into  camp  with  a  "  coon  "  of  the  largest  size,  which  they 


308     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

had  succeeded  in  capturing  by  treeing  it  and  then  cutting  down 
the  tree.  The  "  coon  "  ran  out  of  the  hollow  in  which  it  had  its 
nest,  and  it  and  the  boys  had  a  severe  but  bloodless  battle,  in 
which  the  "coon"  came  out  second  best,  and  unconditionally 
surrendered  to  its  overwhelming  foe.  It  was  borne  into  camp  by 
its  captors,  and  afforded  no  little  amusement  to  a  large  number 
of  the  brigade. 

While  at  Stanford,  Kentucky,  the  boys  employed  their  spare 
time  in  an  ingenious  way,  making  finger  rings,  crosses,  shields, 
figures,  etc.,  out  of  cannel  coal,  which  is  found  in  large  quanti 
ties  in  Kentucky.  Some  specimens  of  their  art  shown  to  me 
were  finished  off  in  the  finest  style  of  the  jeweller's  art,  and  in 
fact  would  reflect  the  highest  credit  on  those  skilled  in  the  pro 
fession. 

Brig.  -Gen.  Ferrero  returned  to  the  2d  brigade  after  an  absence 
of  six  weeks.  He  was  received  by  the  brigade  with  loud  cheers. 
He  relieves  Col.  Hartranft  of  the  command  of  the  division,  and 
the  colonel  thereby  takes  command  of  the  brigade. 

On  the  3d  inst.,  the  llth  N.  H.  and  the  35th  Mass,  struck 
tents  and  took  up  the  line  of  march  just  at  sundown  for  Lex 
ington  depot.  A  few  minutes  after  they  had  left,  the  51st  re 
ceived  orders  to  be  ready  to  leave  Stanford  next  morning  at 
daylight  for  Nicholasville,  Kentucky.  On  the  4th,  as  per  order, 
we  were  ready  to  leave,  and  at  six  o'clock  A.  M.  we  formed 

line  and  left  that  beautiful  camp  for  ;  well,  I  will  tell  you 

after  we  get  to  our  destination.  We  reached  u  Camp  Dick  Rob 
inson,11  distant  from  Stanford  seventeen  miles,  about  4  o'clock, 
p.  M.,  considerably  fatigued  and  a  good  many  sore  feet,  where 
we  pitched  our  tents  for  the  evening.  Lieut. -Col.  Schall  re 
ceived  orders  for  him  to  report  that  night  at  Nicholasville,  but 
the  orders  could  not  be  complied  with,  as  we  were  too  near 
"played  out.'1  We  found  the  8th  East  Tenn.  encamped  at 
this  old  camping  ground,  and  they  witnessed  our  dress  parade 
of  that  evening  with  evident  satisfaction.  The  country  be 
tween  Stanford  and  Lancaster  is  not  of  as  high  a  character  as 
between  Lancaster  and  Covington,  but  in  buildings  of  all 
kinds  it  compares  well  with  any  part  of  Kentucky  that  we 
have  been  in.  There  are  some  private  residences  through 
that  section  that  are  truly  magnificent,  and  had  I  time  to  make 
special  notice  of  any  of  them  I  would  do  so. 

On  Friday  morning,  the  5th  inst.,  at  two  o'clock,  reveille 
was  beat,  and  we  left  Camp  Dick  Robinson  for  Nicholasville, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      309 

distant  fifteen  miles.  We  crossed  Kentucky  river  at  Hickman's 
Bridge  at  sunrise,  being  half  way  of  our  journey  on  foot  for  that 
day.  At  this  point  on  the  Kentucky  river  is  some  truly  roman 
tic  scenery.  On  either  side  are  rocks  of  limestone  and  bastard 
marble  of  an  altitude  of  two  hundred  to  three  hundred  feet. 
High  peaks,  bluffs,  cliffs  and  yawning  abysses  abound  in  this 
place.  The  Lexington  pike  winds  round  one  of  the  lofty  emi 
nences,  and  at  one  point,  about  midway,  the  road  runs  close  to 
a  precipice  of  at  least  three  hun  red  feet  in  height,  with  little 
or  nothing  to  prevent  a  refractory  horse  from  plunging  headlong 
down  this  dizzy  height. 

But  I  must  return  to  our  march.  We  reached  Nicholasville 
by  9£  o'clock  A.  M.  No  cars  being  in  readiness  for  our  trans 
portation,  we  filed  into  a  neighboring  woods  and  took  a  sleep 
of  two  or  three  hours  that  we  had  been  robbed  of  the  night 
before.  At  2  o'clock  p.  M.  cars  were  in  readiness  for  us,  and 
we  left  Nicholasville  for  Lexington.  We  reached  that  beauti 
ful  city  at  3  o'clock  p.  M.  and  left  it  for  Covington  at  4  o'clock 
p.  M.  the  same  day.  When  near  Paris  an  accident  occurred  that 
came  very  near  being  the  death  of  one  of  Co.  B's  boys,  named 
Matthew  Delaney.  He,  along  with  hundreds  of  others,  who 
had  been  on  the  top  of  the  cars  enjoying  the  beautiful  scenery 
of  that  most  beautiful  of  all  States,  Kentucky,  that  so  enchants 
a  person,  was  in  the  act  of  changing  his  position,  and  being 
near  the  outer  edge  of  the  roof  and  the  cars  going  at  the 
highest  rate  of  speed,  causing  them  to  sway  to  and  fro,  he  lost 
his  balance,  and  finding  that  he  was  likely  to  fall  he  attempted 
to  save  himself  as  much  as  possible  by  an  effort  to  leap  to  the 
ground,  and  no  doubt  the  forethought  saved  his  life.  He  fell 
heavily  to  the  ground,  and,  as  the  cars  passed  on,  we  all 
thought  him  dead  ;  but  we  have  since  learned  by  those  who 
arrived  here  to-day,  who  saw  him  yesterday,  that  he  was  very 
little  harmed  by  the  fall,  and  that  he  would  be  all  right  again 
in  a  day  or  two.  We  arrived  at  Covington  about  2  o'clock 
on  the  morning  of  the  6th.  We  slept  in  the  cars  until  day 
light  and  then  disembarked  and  marched  through  that  city  to 
the  wharf  on  the  Ohio,  and  then  embarked  on  the  steamboat 
Queen  City  and  crossed  over  to  Cincinnati.  We  took  the  cars 
of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Railroad  for  Sandoval,  111.,  where 
we  arrived  yesterday  about  9^  o'clock  A.  M.,  changed  cars  for 
those  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  and  proceeded  to  Cairo. 
We  passed  through  the  entire  breadth  of  Indiana  and  arrived 


310     HISTORY   OF  THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

at  the  town  of  Vincennes,  on  the  line  between  Indiana  and 
Illinois,  about  midnight,  and  there  we  were  refreshed  by  a  cup 
of  good  coffee  and  some  bread.  On  Sunday,  at  the  town  of 
De  Soto,  Illinois,  we  were  furnished  with  ample  quantities  of 
good  coifee  and  fried  beefsteaks  and  mutton  chops.  We  ar 
rived  at  Cairo  at  10  o'clock  p.  M.,  Sunday  the  7th,  disembarked 
and  slept  on  the  platform  of  the  depot.  Early  on  Monday  we 
marched  about  a  mile  above  the  city  awaiting  for  transporta 
tion  down  the  Mississippi  river.  More  anon, 

T.  H.  P. 

Below  we  give  a  lettter  from  another  correspon 
dent,  "  E.  S.,"  (Col.  E.  Sohall.) 

NEAR  VICKSBURG,  Miss.,     ) 
June  18th,  1863.  j 

We  purpose  at  this  time  to  give  you  a  brief  history  of  our 
44 excursion"  from  Stanford,  Kentucky,  to  this  place.  When 
in  the  early  part  of  June  orders  were  issued  to  the  troops  to 
reduce  their  baggage,  and  directing  each  soldier  to  carry  sixty 
rounds  of  ammunition,  and  eight  days'  rations  in  haversack  and 
knapsack,  we  little  thought  in  a  few  days  thereafter  we  would 
march  to  the  rear.  One  and  all  looked  for  the  order  to  "  move 
on,"  which  was  to  terminate  in  the  deliverance  of  East  Ten 
nessee.  However,  on  the  3d  much  bustle  was  noticed  among 
the  camps  of  the  regiments  near  to  us,  and  before  dark  all 
struck  tents.  We  were  much  surprised  by  this  movement. 
We  did  not  know  what  to  make  of  it,  as  the  first  and  only  in 
timation  we  had  of  a  movement  was  the  striking  of  tents. 
Then  arose  the  question,  "  W.ill  they  go  forward,  and  will  we 
remain  behind  to  garrison  the  post?"  But  no  one  could  tell. 
However  at  dress  parade  the  officers  were  instructed  to  be 
ready  to  move  at  an  early  hour  in  the  morning ;  and  soon 
afterward  large  fires  sprung  up  all  around,  over  which  the 
soldiers  cooked  their  three  days'  rations.  Ere  darkness  had 
settled  over  us  it  was  evident  to  all  that  our  destination  was  to 
the  rear,  and  not  to  the  front  as  first  supposed.  Of  course 
there  was  much  speculation  as  to  our  movement.  Some  pre 
dicted  we  were  going  to  Yicksburg,  others  that  we  were  going 
to  the  rescue  of  Hooker,  while  as  many  more  thought  we  were 
going  to  Western  Virginia,  and  operate  against  Tennessee  from 
that  point.  Every  one  believed  he  was  right,  and  thus  there 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      811 

was  a  constant  excitement  on  this  subject.  No  doubt  many  as 
they  sat  in  front  of  their  little  tents  on  this  beautiful  evening 
regretted  the  necessity  which  compelled  them  to  forsake  their 
beautiful  camping  ground  and  excellent  water.  But  regrets 
were  in  vain,  for  necessity  consults  the  comforts  of  no  man. 
Early  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  we  bade  good-by  to  Stanford, 
and  briskly  moved  toward  Lexington.  The  day  was  quite 
warm,  making  marching  far  from  pleasant.  It  was  quite  evi 
dent  from  the  remarks  of  the  citizens  that  they  did  not  like 
this  retrograde  movement.  They  expected  the  State  would 
certainly  be  again  invaded  by  the  rebels.  Whether  their  fears 
were  well  grounded  we  are  not  able  to  say,  for  it  is  very 
seldom  we  receive  a  newspaper.  As  we  passed  through  Lan 
caster,  where  we  were  formerly  encamped,  we  found  the  town 
in  possession  of  the  young  ladies,  who  were  making  prepara 
tions  to  give  a  concert  in  the  evening  for  the  benefit  of  the  sick 
soldiers.  We  hope  and  believe  they  were  properly  encouraged 
in  their  noble  work.  A  few  miles  beyond  the  town  the  regiment 
rested  for  several  hours,  after  which  it  resumed  the  march, 
reaching  Camp  Dick  Robinson  at  4  o'clock.  Here  it  was  most 
of  the  Kentucky  regiments  were  organized.  An  East  Tennes 
see  regiment  was  encamped  here.  While  there,  they  had  a 
dress  parade,  which  was  rather  awkwardly  conducted,  for 
which,  however,  due  allowance  was  to  be  made,  for  it  was  the 
first  they  had  with  arms.  Our  men  being  anxious  to  show 
these  noble  patriots  how  well  an  old  regiment  could  perform,  a 
dress  parade  was  ordered  ;  on  which  they  looked  with  much 
surprise,  thinking  it  almost  impossible  men  could  become  so 
proficient  in  the  exercise  of  the  manual.  Many,  too,  for  the 
first  time  heard  the  strains  of  a  brass  band.  It  was  to  them, 
indeed,  a  rich  treat.  During  the  evening  our  men  freely 
mingled  among  them,  obtaining  from  them  a  history  of  their 
trials  in  East  Tennessee.  They  are  true  patriots,  and  deserve 
the  gratitude  of  every  American  for  their  devotion  to  the 
Union.  The  sacrifices  made  by  our  people  are  as  nothing  com 
pared  to  those  made  by  these  exiles.  At  3  o'clock  the  next 
morning  wre  again  moved  forward.  We  passed  the  Kentucky 
river  shortly  after  daybreak.  A  high  bridge  spans  the  river. 
The  bluffs  on  the  northern  banks  of  the  river  rise  to  a  great 
height.  Around  this  bluff  the  road  winds.  At  places  it  is 
quite  narrow,  with  no  railing  to  guard  against  a  fractious 
horse  from  leaping  over  the  dizzy  height.  At  some  points  the 


312     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

height  is  so  great  that  it  is  fearful  to  look  over.  We  will  not 
stop  to  speak  of  the  country — that  has  been  done  by  other  cor 
respondents.  We  reached  Nicholasville  at  about  10  o'clock, 
and  were  at  once  ordered  to  go  on  the  cars  waiting  for  us. 
However,  at  our  arrival  at  the  depot,  we  found  they  were  not 
prepared  for  us.  So  we  marched  to  a  neighboring  grove,  and 
rested  until  1  o'clock.  We  need  not  add  the  men  were  very 
much  tired  by  the  day's  marching.  The  pike  was  hard  and 
very  dusty.  At  1  o'clock  the  train  was  in  readiness  for  us,  and 
we  at  once  took  possession  of  it.  We  arrived  at  Lexington  at 
2,  and  remained  here  for  several  hours.  We  took  the  oppor 
tunity  to  visit  the  cemetery,  which  is  near  to  the  depot.  We 
were  much  pleased  with  the  monument  to  Henry  Clay.  It  is 
built  of  native  marble,  which  somewhat  resembles  granite. 
The  yard  is  the  most  beautiful  we  ever  saw,  and  those  who 
have  visited  Laurel  Hill  say  that  it  will  not  bear  comparison 
with  this.  We  left  Lexington  at  5  o'clock,  and  reached  Cov- 
ington  at  midnight.  Near  Paris  a  private  of  Co.  B — Mat. 
Delany — fell  off  the  cars,  and  was  supposed  to  be  killed.  We 
learned,  however,  a  few  days  af  er,  that  he  was  only  slightly 
injured.  We  remained  in  the  cars  until  near  6  o'clock,  when 
we  got  off,  formed  regiment  and  moved  to  the  Ohio  river. 
Here  we  crossed  in  a  ferry  boat,  and  at  once  proceeded  to  the 
Ohio  and  Mississippi  rcilroad  depot,  where  we  again  got  on 
the  cars.  We  staid  here  long  enough  to  get  refreshments — not 
from  the  citizens — but  such  as  our  purses  secured. 

We  moved  off  at  ten  o'clock.  As  we  passed  through  the  city 
there  was  the  usual  cheering  and  waving  of  flags  and  handker 
chiefs.  It  seemed  to  be,  too,  a  festive  day  for  the  young,  for  as 
we  passed  along  the  Ohio,  we  saw  a  large  steamer  crowded 
with  gayly  dressed  misses  and  gents,  who  evidently  intended 
to  spend  the  day  in  one  of  the  many  beautiful  groves  along  the 
river.  As  we  passed  them  there  was  quite  a  lively  waving  of 
handkerchiefs.  No  doubt  many  of  the  soldiers  wished,  as  they 
gazed  on  the  gay  party,  that  this  wicked  rebellion  was  crushed, 
so  that  they,  too,  could  participate  in  these  festive  pleasures. 

At  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  we  received  coffee  at  Sey 
mour,  which  proved  quite  refreshing.  Again  at  midnight  we 
had  bread  and  coffee  at  Vincennes,  111.  It  was  very  tiresome 
this  night  travelling,  as  the  cars  was  most  too  much  crowded 
for  comfort. 

At  Sandoval,   Illinois,  where  we  arrived  early  on  Sunday 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      313 

morning,  we  changed  cars.  We  here  saw  the  car  which  the  com 
pany  had  built  for  the  use  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  while  making 
his  tour  through  the  West.  It  was  finely  arranged  inside — and 
must  have  been  very  gratifying  to  the  Prince.  After  the  change 
was  completed,  we  left  for  Cairo,  where  we  arrived  at  midnight. 
At  Ccntralia  the  troops  were  supplied  with  refreshments,  which 
proved  very  acceptable  to  all. 

The  troops  disembarked  at  three  o'clock  A.  M.  and  slept  the 
remainder  of  the  night  on  the  platform  of  the  depot.  At  eight 
o'clock  the  regiment  moved  up  the  banks  of  the  river  a  short 
distance,  and  went  into  camp.  Towards  evening  the  Paymas 
ter  came  round  to  pay  us,  but  just  as  he  was  about  to  com 
mence  an  order  came  for  us  to  go  immediately  on  board  the 
steamer  Hope.  The  regiment  was  at  once  formed  and  com 
menced  to  embark  on  the  steamer.  It  proved  to  be  a  very  fine 
boat,  there  being  ample  room  for  all.  The  officers  were  very 
polite  and  gentlemanly.  We  left  at  about  six  o'clock. 

We  will  not  stop  to  talk  of  the  towns  and  plantations  we 
passed.  This  has  already  been  done.  We  arrived  at  Memphis 
on  Wednesday  morning.  The  day  previous,  we  had  been  paid 
by  Maj.  McCook,  the  lather  of  the  many  McCooks  in  the  Army 
and  Navy,  who  have  so  much  distinguished  themselves. 

We  laid  at  Memphis  all  day  of  Wednesday  and  Thursday. 
Many  took  the  opportunity  to  visit  it.  It  is  really  a  very  pretty 
city,  and  we  were  much  pleased  with  its  appearance.  We  met 
several  former  residents  of  Norristown.  Among  the  number 
were  Squire  Weaver,  Al.  Lindsey,  and  Leidy  and  son.  The}' 
are  all  doing  business  in  this  city. 

We  left  early  on  Friday  morning.  Arrived  at  Helena  at  ten 
o'clock.  He-re  quite  a  warm  discussion  arose  between  our 
troops  and  those  of  the  west.  Gen.  Prentiss  finally  interfered. 
Instead,  however,  of  ordering  his  own  troops  to  be  silent,  he 
called  upon  the  officers  of  our  troops  to  order  them  to  be  silent. 

We  expected  all  along  to  be  fired  upon  by  one  of  the  many 
bands  of  guerillas  who  prowl  along  the  river,  but  we  were 
never  molested,  though  one  of  the  boats  a  short  distance  be 
hind  us,  was  fired  into. 

We  arrived  at  Sherman's  Landing,  in  sight  of  Vicksburg,  on 
Sunday  morning  at  eight  o'clock.  We  at  once  disembarked 
and  went  into  camp  near  the  landing.  Near  to  us  was  the 
celebrated  canal,  of  which  so  much  has  been  written  by  news 
paper  correspondents. 


314     HISTORY   OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

In  the  evening  orders  came  to  move  early  in  the  morning. 
At  four  o'clock,  we  moved  off.  At  an  early  hour  we  reached 
Carthage.  No  boat  being  there  to  convey  us  across  the  river, 
we  stacked  arms  and  were  dismissed.  This  being  the  camping 
ground  for  the  numerous  negroes  who  came  into  our  lines, 
there  was  sufficient  to  interest  us  while  laying  here. 

A  little  before  noon  we  crossed  the  Mississippi,  landing  at 
Warrenton.  We  were  ordered  to  go  into  camp,  which  we  did. 
But  our  stay  was  short,  for  scarcely  had  we  erected  our  little 
shelters,  ere  orders  came  to  go  back.  The  troops  immediately 
went  on  the  transports,  and  in  a  short  time  we  were  once  more 
in  Carthage.  Proceeding  along  the  banks  of  the  river,  a  short 
distance,  we  again  went  into  camp ;  but  at  dusk  we  again  re 
ceived  marching  orders.  The  regiment  was  promptly  formed, 
and  we  moved  back  to  Sherman's  Landing.  Remained  here 
all  night,  and  next  day  went  on  board  of  one  of  the  transports, 
and  at  night  reached  Haines  Bluff  on  the  Yazoo  river.  The 
following  morning  we  disembarked,  and  marched  to  our  pres 
ent  location,  which  is  some  three  miles  from  the  landing.  We 
have  thus  hastily  and  very  briefly  alluded  to  our  journey  from 
Kentucky  to  Vicksburg.  E.  S.. 


CHAPTER    III. 

Off  for  Vicksburg — The  8th  Tennessee — Lexington — Covington 
— Cairo,  Illinois — Big  catfish — On  the  Mississippi — Corres 
pondence  from  the  regiment — Sherman's  Landing — Mortal- 
firing — Letters  to  the  "National  Defender," — Description 
of  the  operations  in  the  rear  of  Vicksburg. 

ON  the  4th  June,  1863,  the  regiment  left  camp  at 
Stanford,  Ky.,  at  6  A.  M.,  for  Vicksburg,  Miss.,  to 
reinforce  Grant,  and  to  assist  in  protecting  his  rear 
from  the  rebel  Gen.  Johnston,  who  was  hovering 
around  between  the  Big  Black  river  and  the  lines  of 
Gen.  Grant,  who  had  Pemberton  invested  within  the 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  315 

city  limits  of  Vicksburg.  The  trip  occupied  ten 
clays  from  Stanford  to  Sherman's  Landing,  La., 
where  it  arrived  at  10  A.  M.,  on  Sunday,  June  14th, 
1863  ;  but  the  actual  time  occupied  in  travel  was 
eight  days.  The  first  day's  march  from  Stanford 
was  on  a  very  hot  day,  and  the  regiment  made  about 
eighteen  miles  by  4  p.  M.,  reaching  and  camping  at 
Camp  Dick  Robinson,  on  the  Lexington  turnpike, 
about  fifteen  or  sixteen  miles  from  Nicholasville. 
The  great  heat  of  the  day  and  long  marching,  with 
bat  little  rest,  and  a  good  part  of  the  day's  work 
over  the  hard  turnpike,  found  the  men  completely 
jaded  out  and  footsore.  While  preparing  to  put  up 
a  temporary  camp  for  the  night,  the  men  of  the  8th 
Tennessee  regiment,  who  were  encamped  on  the  op 
posite  side  of  the  pike,  waited  on  Lieut.-Col.  Schall, 
and  requested  him  to  have  a  dress  parade  for  their 
benefit,  as  they  had  never  seen  a  regiment  drill  or 
on  "parade."  Lieut.-Col.  S.  replied  that  he  "would 
willingly  do  so  if  his  men  were  in  a  fit  condition  to 
appear,  but  they  are  '  played  out,'  foot  sore,  and 
their  clothing,  arms,  and  accoutrements  are  not  in  a 
fit  condition ;  and,  my  friends,  I  can't  find  it  in  my 
heart  to  order  a  dress  parade,  but  I  will  see  what 
they  say."  He  did  see  what  they  would  say,  for  in 
ten  minutes  after,  the  regiment  was  on  the  color  line. 
Tired  out  as  every  one  was,  it  was  not  expected  to 
be  in  strict  accordance  with  military  discipline;  but 
the  men  actually  reverenced  their  Lieut. -Colonel, 
and  their  whole  heart  was  in  their  drill  to  make  as 
creditable  display  as  possible.  After  the  parade 
was  over,  the  Lieut.-Colonel  pronounced  it  equal,  if 
not  superior,  to  any  dress  parade  he  ever  held.  One 
thing  sure,  the  splendid  brass  band  accompanying 


316     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

the  regiment  never  performed  better  than  on  this 
occasion.  The  8th  Tennessee  regiment  witnessed 
the  dress  parade  with  evident  satisfaction  as  an  ex 
hibition,  but  as  an  example  to  them  they  became 
discouraged,  for,  as  they  expressed  themselves,  it 
was  showing  to  them  how  to  do  what  was  an  im 
possibility  to  them,  as  they  could  never  handle  a 
gun  in  that  prompt  way  ;  but  Lieut.-Col.  S.  encour 
aged  them  to  "  try,  try  again !  and  in  time  they 
would  be  as  proficient  in  arms  as  was  the  olst  P.  V., 
as  his  men  were  as  'green  as  they'  when  first  en 
listed."  The  two  regiments  mingled  very  freely 
together  until  time  to  "turn  in."  The  next  morning 
the  reveille  was  beat  at  2  o'clock,  and  the  regiment 
took  up  the  line  of  march  at  precisely  3  o'clock, 
and  reached  Hickman's  Bridge,  on  the  Kentucky 
river,  between  daylight  and  sunrise,  being  full  one- 
half  of  the  day's  march  accomplished;  by  9J-  o'clock 
it  had  reached  the  end  of  its  "  route  step  march." 
The  cars  to  convey  the  regiment  were  not  in  readi 
ness  to  receive  it,  and  the  men,  after  stacking  their 
arms  in  an  inviting  grove,  laid  themselves  down  to 
rest  and  sleep  ;  but  by  noon  they  began  to  stir,  and 
strolled  into  town  to  buy  some  knick-knacks  for 
their  comfort  on  their  journey :  pies,  soft  bread, 
cheese,  and  last,  but  not  least,  canteens  full  of  "  old 
Bourbon,"  were  the  articles  most  sought,  especially 
the  whiskey.  At  1  p.  M.,  the  regiment  embarked  on 
the  cars,  and  left  for  Lexington,  where  it  arrived  at 
2  p.  M.,  but,  from  some  inexplicable  cause,  it  did  not 
get  away  from  that  beautiful  city  until  4  P.  M. 

While  waiting  at  this  place,  the  men  scattered  like 
a  flock  of  scared  sheep,  rambling  throu.  b  the  city  and 
its  suburbs,  to  see  the  sights  and  to  lay  in  a  fresh  sup- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      317 

ply  of  "  Bourbon."  At  4  P.  M.  the  whistle  blew  for 
"  all  aboard,"  and  in  five  minutes  after,  the  train  went 
whizzing  on  its  way,  with  every  man  on  board,  to 
the  city  of  Covington,  Ky.,  on  the  Ohio  river,  op 
posite  Cincinnati,  where  it  arrived  at  2  A.  M.  of  the 
6th  of  June,  1863.  After  waiting  for  daylight,  the 
regiment  crossed  the  river,  and  took  the  cars  for 
Cairo,  111.,  where  it  arrived  on  Sunday  night,  about 
10  o'clock  of  the  7th  of  June.  After  sleeping  on 
the  platform  of  the  depot  that  night,  the  regiment 
left  early  on  Monday  morning,  to  embark  on  a 
steamer  for  Vicksburg  ;  but  on  arriving  at  the  wharf, 
there  were  no  pilots  to  be  obtained.  The  regiment 
marched  up  the  Ohio  river  about  a  mile  from  the 
city,  made  fires  and  a  cup  of  coffee.  Here  the  men 
saw,  for  the  first  time,  the  famous  Mississippi  catfish, 
but  their  money  being  scarce,  they  could  not  pur 
chase  the  coveted  delicacies.  Some  of  the  officers 
had  compassion  on  their  men,  and  purchased  a  few 
for  their  own  companies.  Among  the  benevolent 
was  Capt.  G.  W .  Bisbing,  who  supplied  his  company 
with  several  fish,  of  which  the  least  weighed  not  less 
than  twenty-five  pounds,  and  all  his  company  had  a 
large  ration. 

A  little  before  dark,  a  pilot  was  impressed  into 
the  service,  and  placed  on  the  steamer  Hope,  and  the 
regiment  embarked  for  Vicksburg.  From  some 
cause,  the  steamer  halted  at  Memphis,  but  the  whole 
trip  is  so  graphically  described  by  the  correspondent 
of  the  "  National  Defender,1'1  that  it  makes  comment 
unnecessary.  We  give  it  below  : 


318     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-F1EST    REGIMENT 

CAMP  OF  THE  51sT  PENNA., 

NEAR  SNYDEK'S  BLUFF,  Miss  , 
June  18<7i,  1863. 

Here  we  are,  near  the  "  juraping-off  place,"  surrounded  by 
cane  brakes  and  all  other  kind  of  "breaks."  We  left  Cairo, 
111.,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  8th  instant,  on  board  of  the  fine 
steamer  Hope,  for  Memphis,  Tenn.  We  travelled  all  night, 
and  thereby  missed  a  "peep"  at  Island  No.  Ten,  which  we 
passed  a  little  before  daylight,  much  to  the  regret  of  all  on 
board.  We  stopped  twice  to  take  on  wood,  on  the  9th,  and 
had  to  lay  over  for  the  night  on  account  of  the  Egyptian  dark 
ness  that  environed  us.  Our  boat  was  made  fast  to  a  tree  on 
the  Arkansas  shore,  and  then  we  put  out  a  number  of  pickets 
for  the  safety  of  the  boat  and  all  on  board.  It  rained  all  that 
night  in  torrents,  and  I  must  say  that  it  rains  the  easiest  of 
anything  you  ever  saw.  We  have  seen  it  rain  when  it  was 
thougnt  impossible  to  do  so.  WTe  reached  Memphis,  Tenn., 
on  the  morning  of  the  10th. 

Changing  the  subject,  we  were  paid  off  on  the  day  before  and 
I  am  sorry  to  say  that  the  Mississippi  river  and  also  the  City  of 
Memphis  abounds  with  the  "light-lingered  gentry"  technically 
called  pickpockets,  which  our  boys  have  discovered  to  their 
sorrow.  Our  regiment  alone  has  been  the  loser  of  near  a  thou 
sand  dollars.  Many  of  the  boys  had  their  pockets  cut  and 
the  contents  abstracted  while  making  purchases  in  the  city  and 
would  only  find  it  out,  when  the  villains  had  escaped  with  their 
booty,  as  they  would  go  to  pay  for  their  purchases.  Many  of 
them  lost  their  all.  A  large  amount  was  put  in  the  Adams 
Express  Office  to  be  forwarded  home,  and  those  wTho  have  been 
in  the  habit  of  receiving  money  from  the  regiment  will  know, 
if  they  are  slighted  this  time,  that  the  former  senders  of  money 
are  minus  through  the  manly  art  of  abstraction. 

The  City  of  Memphis  is  a  splendid  place,  the  streets  are  laid 
out  with  nice  precision  and  run  at  right  angles.  There  is  an 
air  of  aristocracy  in  the  appearance  of  many  of  the  private 
residences,  but  all  the  large  buildings  are  in  military  hands  and 
are  used  mostly  for  hospital  purposes.  Provisions  of  all  kinds 
are  at  high  prices,  cheese,  25  cts.  per  lb.,  eggs,  40  cts.  per  doz., 
dried  beef,  25  cts.  per  lb.,  oranges,  (small)  10  cts.  per  piece, 
and  what  is  a  five  cent  loaf  of  bread  at  home  is  12£  cts.  or  two 
loaves  for  a  "quarter"  as  they  sell  here,  cigars  (sixes)  10  cts. 
per  piece,  chewing  tobacco  such  as  sold  at  home  wrhen  we  left 
for  5  cts.  *i  plug  is  selling  in  that  city  at  25  to  30  cts.  per  plug, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      319 

sweet  cakes  such  as  we  can  get  at  home  ten  for  a  "  fip  "  we  can 
get  here  three  for  a  quarter. 

We  left  the  City  of  Sharpers  (Memphis)  at  daylight  (on 
the  steamer  Commercial,  which  appeared  to  have  no  pick 
pockets  on  as  no  one  lost  any  money  while  on  that  boat)  of 
the  12th.  Durell's  battery  also  was  on  the  same  boat.  The 
pilot  houses  on  all  the  boats  have  to  be  protected  in  some  Avay 
from  the  guerillas  who  infest  both  shores  of  the  river  and  fire 
on  all  boats  that  go  up  or  down  the  stream  when  they  can 
do  so  with  safety  to  themselves.  Most  of  the  pilots  are  pro 
tected  by  pieces  of  iron  boilers  £  of  an  inch  thick  and  six  or 
seven  feet  in  height,  of  which — one  piece  forms  a  semi-circle 
and  a  piece  is  put  on  either  side  of  the  wheel,  the  pilot  standing 
in  the  concave  of  the  half  boiler,  making  him  pretty  safe  against 
bullets,  but  not  from  cannon  shot.  "We  were  not  molested  in 
any  way  on  our  trip  down,  being  escorted  by  several  gunboats 
past  the  most  dangerous  points.  All  the  towns  on  both  shores 
from  Memphis  to  Vicksburg  have  had  to  be  burned  or  destroyed 
in  some  way,  for  they  afforded  shelter  to  the  guerillas  and  gave 
them  every  opportunity  to  fire  on  the  boats  with  impunity,  the 
pilots  being  their  targets.  The  Mississippi  boats  bear  the  marks 
of  many  well-directed  cannon  shot ;  some  of  them  I  noticed  had 
as  many  as  four  shots  through  their  pilot  houses  alone,  and 
some  have  their  wheel-houses  terribly  shattered. 

We  arrived  at  Sherman's  Landing  on  Sunday  morning  and 
camped  in  the  woods  on  the  banks  of  the  canal  or  famous  "  cut 
off"  in  front  of  Vicksburg.  The  mortar  boats  laying  under 
cover  of  the  high  bank  of  the  point  in  front  of  the  beleaguered 
city,  keep  up  an  incessant  fire  both  day  and  night,  dropping  a 
nine  inch  shell  either  in  the  city  or  the  rebel  entrenchments  and 
no  doubt  with  considerable  effect.  Grant's  army  forms  a  semi 
circle  or  crescent  far  below,  to  the  rear  and  above  the  city,  from 
the  shore  at  Warrenton  to  the  Yazoo  river.  Gunboats  lay  be 
low  the  city  and  fire  a  shot  every  few  miimtes.  The  city  is 
plainly  visible  to  the  naked  eye  from  Sherman's  Landing,  but 
with  the  aid  of  glasses  objects  moving  in  the  streets  can  be  dis 
covered  quite  plainly. 

On  the  morning  of  the  loth  we  marched  to  Carthage,  Louisi 
ana,  and  took  the  ferry-boat  and  crossed  the  river  to  Warren- 
ton,  on  the  Mississippi  shore  8  miles  below  Vicksburg,  but 
before  another  boat  load  could  get  over  the  order  was  counter 
manded  and  we  had  to  re-cross  and  march  back  to  Sherman's 


320     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

Landing,  which  we  reached  by  9  o'clock  that  night.  Next 
morning  we  went  on  board  the  steamer  John  H.  Dickey  and 
steamed  it  up  the  Yazoo  river  to  Raines  Bluff.  While  on  our 
passage  up  the  Yazoo  we  were  visited  with  a  most  terrific  hail 
storm  which  lasted  only  a  few  minutes,  however;  some  of  the 
hail  stones  were  the  size  of  a  pigeon  egg  and  pelted  all  who  were 
unfortunate  enough  to  have  to  be  on  the  hurricane  deck,  with 
unrelenting  pity.  A  few  minutes  after  the  storm  had  ceased 
the  boys  descried  a  huge  alligator  laying  like  a  log  in  the  water, 
but  the  noise  of  the  boat  disturbed  him  and  he  buried  himself 
in  the  "  deep  bosom"  of  the  Yazoo  river.  I  must  not  forget  to 
tell  you  a  fish  story,  even  at  the  risk  "of  it  being  condemned  as 
rather  fishy.  Lieut.  Jacob  P.  Brooks  of  Co.  F.  took  his  line 
and  went  down  to  the  Mississippi  river  and  got  into  a  yawl  and 
dropped  his  line  in  the  water  and  much  to  his  gratification  he 
succeeded  in  hooking  a  catfish  weighing  21  Ibs.,  he  baited  his 
hook  again  and  in  less  time  than  it  takes  me  to  tell  it  he  got  a 
"cattie"  weighing  35  Ibs.,  that  being,  as  he  thought,  his  share, 
he  quit  fishing  and  went  into  camp  with  his  fishy  prize  to  enjoy 
a  fry.  These  fish  were  taken  while  at  Sherman's  Landing,  and 
numbers  of  other  fishermen  had  equally  as  good  luck  in  catch 
ing  fish  but  not  such  large  ones. 

We  disembarked  from  the  Dickey  on  the  morning  of  the  17th 
and  after  getting  a  little  breakfast  we  took  up  the  line  of  march 
to  these  bluffs,  and  here  we  are  now  in  camp  enjoying  a  little 
rest  after  fourteen  days  and  nights  constant  travelling. 

We  are  here,  as  I  learn,  for  the  purpose  of  checking  Joe  John 
ston  from  getting  in  the  rear  of  Grant,  while  the  seige  continues, 
but  from  all  that  we  can  learn  Peinberton  cannot  hold  out  much 
longer,  for  both  the  citizens  and  the  rebel  troops  have  to  depend 
upon  the  Mississippi  river  for  water,  and  when  any  one  comes 
down  to  the  river  for  water  our  mortars  drop  a  shell  about  the 
size  of  a  Y'ankee  water  bucket  in  their  vicinity  and  they  have 
to  leave.  Their  mules  and  horses  must  be  out  of  forage,  for 
while  we  were  down  at  Warrenton  several  mules  floated  past 
us  that  had  either  died  of  starvation  or  from  our  shells,  and  the 
rebs  in  the  city  have  turned  several  hundreds  of  horses,  mules 
and  cattle  loose  which  the  88th  Illinois  captured  and  have  them 
in  an  enclosure.  One  of  the  88th  111.,  told  me  that  last  week 
he  seen  as  many  as  a  dozen  dead  mules  floating  down  the  river 
at  one  time. 

The  boys  here  are  enjoying  themselves  in  picking  that  de- 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  321 

licious  fruit,  the  blackberry.  I  gathered  a  fine  lot  in  a  few 
minutes  yesterday.  Don't  it  make  your  mouth  water?  Just 
think  of  eating  blackberries  on  the  17th  of  June.  I  must  close 
my  letter  and  begin  to  clean  up  my  accoutrements,  as  there  is 
to  be  a  general  inspection  to-morrow  morning  at  10  o'clock. 
More  anon. 

Yours,  &c. 

T.  H.  P. 

CAMP  OF  51  ST  PENNA. 
SNYDER'S  BLUFF,  Miss.,  June  21st,  1863. 

On  last  Friday  night,  19th  hist.,  at  about  11  o'clock,  heavy 
cannonading  commenced  at  Vicksburg  between  our  forces  and 
the  rebels,  which  equalled  the  bombardment  of  Fredericksburg, 
Va.,  last  December,  in  constant  heavy  thunder-like  roar  and 
length  of  hours.  It  continued  incessantly  until  10  o'clock  of 
Saturday  morning,  the  20th.  Our  pickets  plainly  heard  the 
musketry  and  the  sharp  shrill  crack  of  the  rifle.  I  have  not 
been  able  to  find  out  with  certainty  the  cause,  but  have  been 
informed  that  the  rebels  massed  their  troops  and  made  a  des 
perate  effort  to  cut  their  way  out  through  our  lines  and  earth 
works,  in  which  they  were  unsuccessful,  for  they  were  driven 
back  with  considerable  slaughter  on  their  part  and  very  little  on 
ours. 

It  has  been  rumored  through  our  camp  that  General  Grant 
has  obtained  information,  on  reliable  authority,  that  Pembei  ton 
has  at  least  three  months'  provisions  within  the  besieged  city, 
and,  therefore,  the  fall  of  that  much-coveted  city  will  be  delayed 
for  a  long  time,  as  starving  out  will  be  the  proper  modus  oper- 
andi  of  achieving  that  great  object, 

I  have  been  taking  a  stroll  out  through  the  country,  and  can 
say  for  this  part  of  the  State,  that  if  a  landed  proprietor  would 
offer  me  a  farm,  of  any  size,  gratis,  with  a  proviso  that  I  would 
have  to  live  on  it  (or  rather  starve  on  it)  I  should  unhesitatingly 
decline  his  kind,  or  cruel,  offer.  Corn  is  out  in  tassel,  and  some 
is  forward  enough  for  boiling  ears  to  be  plucked;  but  how  they 
manage  to  farm  this  land  would  puzzle  a  Pennsylvania  farmer 
to  tell,  for  a  more  rugged  country  cannot  be  found, — the  face 
of  the  country  is  broken,  and  possesses  nothing  but  ravines, 
gorges,  hills,  cliffs  and  bluffs  of  all  altitudes — bluffs  and  cliffs 
overhanging  deep  gorges  that  sends  a  thrill  of  timidity  through 
a  person  when  standing  on  the  verge  looking  down  the  dizzy 

15 


322     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

height.  Most  of  these  bluffs  are  covered  with  dense  cane- 
brakes,  blackberry  briars,  and  underbrush  that  affords  harbor 
to  the  venemous  reptiles,  such  as  rattlesnakes,  green  and  gray 
lizards,  stingarees,  &c.,  which  are  to  be  found  in  great  numbers 
here,  but  are  daily  growing  beautifully  less,  for  the  boys  are 
continually  killing  them  wherever  they  find  them. 

Col.  Hartranft  is  again  back  in  command  of  our  regiment. 
On  last  Friday  he  had  a  general  inspection  of  the  regiment,  in 
which  could  be  seen  the  wide  difference  between  the  condition 
of  arms,  accoutrements,  clothing  and  persons  that  had  been 
exposed  to  all  kinds  of  weather  and  inconvenience  of  travelling 
both  day  and  night  without  shelter  for  two  weeks,  and  the 
general  inspection  of  yesterday.  The  inspection  of  yesterday 
was  satisfactory,  and  proved  that  a  few  days  in  camp  brings 
everything  up  to  its  original  pristine  brilliancy  again. 

Sanitary  orders  were  issued  yesterday  from  headquarters  to 
all  the  regiments  of  the  division  for  cautionary  measures  against 
that  scourge  of  all  sickness,  the  yellow  fever  ;  it  warns  us  not 
to  expose  ourselves  unnecessarily  to  the  scorching  rays  of  the 
sun  in  day  time  or  to  the  damp  and  chilly  night  air ;  also,  to 
use  no  water  for  drinking  or  culinaiy  purposes  other  than  that 
obtained  from  wells  and  springs,  in  which  barrels  or  boxes 
must  be  sunk  for  the  purpose  of  guarding  them  against  any 
uncleanly  matter  finding  its  way  into  the  water,  which  undoubt 
edly  would  be  the  case  in  the  event  of  a  rain,  for  the  current  of 
water  which  necessarily  must  flow  down  the  deep  gullies  and 
ravines  would  wash  or  carry  down  in  its  "rushing  career"  the 
carcasses  of  dead  mules  and  other  filth  that  accumulates  from 
one  rain  till  another.  We  are  recommended  to  bathe  our  per 
sons  at  least  twice  a  week. 

A  report  is  rife  in  camp  to-day  that  the  rebel  Lee  is  in  Penn 
sylvania,  and  within  20  miles  of  Harrisburg,  w7ith  his  horde  of 
"bearded  and  beardless  warriors."  It  causes  no  little  excite 
ment  among  the  few  Pennsylvania  regiments  that  are  here ;  but 
don't  let  them  stay  there  ;  rout  them  out  if  there  is  any  truth  in 
the  report;  the  majority  here  believe  it,  some  few  don't,  and  I 
am  with  that  few.  If  he  is  there,  I  think  he  will  be  apt  to  find 
that  he  is  bearding  the  lion  in  his  den. 

The  weather  here  at  present  is  very  dry,  and  extremely  hot 
in  the  daytime,  but  quite  chilly  at  night.  The  health  of  our 
regiment  is  good.  AVe  are  encamped  on  the  bluffs  about  nine 
miles  above  Vicksburg.  Although  not  in  a  desirable  location, 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  323 

yet  it  is  far  more  convenient  than  many  other  regiments  have, 
for  we  have  water  at  the  foot  of  the  hills,  while  the  other  regi 
ments  have  to  haul  their  water  from  our  camp  spring,  which  is 
certainly  one  of  the  finest  flows  of  water  in  this  part  of  this 
district. 

The  boys  continue  to  gather  daily  large  quantities  of  black 
berries,  and  also  a  fruit  resembling  very  close  what  we  call  at 
home  mountain  cherries,  but  in  flavor  they  are  vastly  superior, 
being  just  sweet  enough  when  fully  ripe  to  be  pronounced  ex 
cellent. 

Here  are  now  nearly  three  weeks  since  a  mail  has  blessed  the 
eyes  of  the  regiment.  What  is  the  matter  ?  Lee  has  not  cer 
tainly  torn  up  the  Pennsylvania  Central  Railroad,  has  he  ?  We 
are  becoming  very  impatient  for  a  mail  ;  and  if  none  comes, 
there  will  be  no  need  for  us  to  write  home  any  more,  for  you 
folks  will  have  to  share  the  misfortune  with  us.  I  have  just 
been  told  by  a  gentleman,  who  just  came  down  the  Mississippi 
river,  that  it  is  almost  impossible  for  a  boat  to  get  either  up  or 
down  the  river  on  account  of  the  numerous  guerilla  bands  that 
infest  both  shores.  If  that  is  the  case,  it  may  in  some  measure 
be  a  cause  of  delay  in  the  non-receipt  of  our  mails. 

This  is  the  greatest  country  that  we  have  been  injyet  for  in 
sects  of  all  descriptions.  Here  is  where  you  can  find  your  fine, 
plump  mosquitoes,  sand-flies,  beetles,  bugs,  ants,  worms  of  all 
kinds,  ticks,  and  in  1'act  anything  in  the  insect  line  that  you 
want  for  the  formation  of  a  cabinet  of  nature's  tiniest  works. 
Nature  has  slighted  this  State  in  the  more  substantial  and  nec 
essary  means  of  subsistence,  and  seems  to  have  been  most 
profuse  in  bestowing  her  gifts  to  that  State  of  all  States,  Ken 
tucky.  Art,  however,  has  done  more  for  Indiana  and  Illinois, 
as  far  as  can  be  judged  by  a  hasty  ride  through  those  States, 
than  any  other  State,  apart  from  Pennsylvania,  that  I  have 
been  in,  in  north,  south,  east  or  west.  In  Indiana  the  well 
cultivated  vineyards  indicate  the  thrift  of  her  population,  and 
the,  I  might  say,  heavenly  appearance  of-  their  beautiful  but 
small  white  cottages  as  they  stand  out  in  bold  relief  on  either 
side  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Central  Railroad,  indicate  a 
refinement  of  taste  that  poets  or  painters  might  puzzle  their 
fertile  imaginations  to  equal,  so  dazzling  and  enchanting  is  the 
picture  to  be  seen  along  that  route.  Illinois  is  not  behind  her 
sister  State,  Indiana,  in  her  artificial  beauty,  for  there  too  stands 
those  beautiful  white  cottages  that  so  enchant  a  traveller 


324     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

and  almost  makes  him  think  that  he  certainly  is  in  dreamland, 
and  the  scenes  before  him  are  the  works  of  fairies,  and  not  of 
mortals  like  himself.  There,  too,  stand  beautiful  towns  scat 
tered  over  the  widespread  prairies,  looking  at  a  distance  like 
towns  built  by  the  same  fairy-like  hand  out  of  the  pure  and 
unpolluted  snow,  so  white  and  neat  are  they  in  their  appearance, 
and  wearing  an  air  of  hospitality  and  welcome  about  them  that 
baffles  description.  More  anon. 

T.  H.  P. 

CAMP  OP  THE  51st  P.  V.,  SNYDER'S  BLUFFS, 
MILLDALE,  Miss.,  June  29£/i. 

Just  as  I  was  about  beginning  this  week's  correspondence, 
we  got  marching  orders,  and  in  consequence  of  the  move  I 
am  a  little  late  in  the  transmission  of  my  weekly  epistle.  Since 
writing  my  last  I've  had  a  stroll  of  a  few  miles  into  the  bowels 
of  Mississippi,  and  a  more  rugged  and  poverty  stricken  State,  it 
would  be  difficult  to  find. 

On  Monday,  the  22d  inst.,  the  9th  Army  Corps  began,  for  the 
first  time  in  its  history,  to  entrench  itself  against  an  attack  from 
the  enemy,  the  51st  performing  a  goodly  share  of  the  work  in 
digging  rifle  pits  and  felling  trees,  so  as  to  give  our  batteries  a 
clear  scope  of  country  for  the  use  of  their  engines  of  death. 
The  breastworks  extend  for  a  number  of  miles  protecting 
Grant's  rear  from  any  attempt  on  Johnston's  part  to  harass  the 
beseiging  forces.  Heavy  cannonading  began  a  little  before 
dark  on  the  23d,  and  continued  all  that  night  and  throughout 
the  next  day,  notwithstanding  a  heavy  rain  was  falling  nearly 
the  whole  time.  On  the  25th  the  cannonading  was  resumed 
with  still  more  vigor  on  the  doomed  city,  but  since  then  only 
occasional  shots  from  the  mortars  and  heavy  guns  are  heard. 

Blackberries  continue  in  great  abundance  and  the  troops 
gather  large  quantities  of  them.  "We  are  to  enjoy  the  blessing 
of  fresh  baked  bread  in  a  few  days.  Our  regiment  have  al 
ready  begun  the  construction  of  an  oven  for  that  purpose,  and 
it  will  be  eagerly  sought  after  by  the  boys,  for  they  are,  beyond 
a  doubt,  very  tired  of  masticating  those  hard  crackers,  that  have 
been  used  by  them  for  so  long  a  time. 

As  I  said  above,  that  as  we  had  inarching  orders  I  am  a  little 
late  with  this,  and  must  necessarily  be  very  brief,  but  will  pro 
mise  to  continue  my  weekly  efforts  as  regularly  as  circumstances 
will  permit  me  to  do  so,  for  it  is  my  wish  to  keep  up  a  current 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEEES.  325 

of  events  linked  together  from  my  first  letter,  until  our  regiment 
drops  down  in  Main  street,  Norristown,  after  having  either 
faithfully  served  its  three  years  out,  or  this  unholy  rebellion  is 
forever  crushed,  and  the  bonds  of  this  most  glorious  Union 
more  firmly  united  and  cemented  together  by  the  blood  of  those 
who  sacrificed  luxury,  ease  and  comfort,  for  the  tented  field, 
and  have  met  a  soldier's  grave.  Many  more  of  our  comrades 
will  find  a  grave  in  this  far  distant  land  ere  that  peace  and 
prosperity,  so  much  coveted,  can  be  firmly  established,  but 
what  parent  will  refuse  to  shed  his  blood,  and  freely  too,  that 
his  offspring  may  inherit  such  a  rich  legacy  as  our  forefathers 
transmitted  to  us,  but  which  some  of  their  children  have  been 
so  recreant  to  the  trust  as  to  attempt  its  destruction. 

The  Rev.  D.  G.  Mallory  has  had  his  Chapel  Tent  put  up  at 
the  Bluffs,  and  held  service  in  it  several  times.  It  is  not  as  well 
attended  as  it  should  be,  bnt  I  cannot  think  it  is  because  immo 
rality  in  the  regiment  is  on  the  increase,  but  rather  think  it  is 
owing  to  the  extreme  heat  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  fatigue  of 
the  boys  coming  into  camp  at  night  after  toiling  all  day  in  the 
rifle  pits,  and  cutting  clown  the  dense  forest  which  surround  our 
breastworks.  The  health  of  the  regiment  is  still  very  good. 
There  were  five  more  discharges  from  the  regiment  to-day, 
cause,  physical  disabilities,  two  or  three  on  account  of  wounds 
received  in  action.  The  headquarter  guards  and  teamsters  of 
this  corps  arrived  to-day  from  Kentucky,  on  board  of  the  stea 
mer  Prima  Donna.  They  had  48  cannon  shot  and  two  vollies 
of  musketry  fired  into  them  while  coming  down  the  Mississippi 
river,  below  Helena,  Ark.,  by  about  800  guerillas,  who  hold 
that  point  for  their  murderous  purposes.  Five  horses  and  20 
mules  were  killed,  and  one  or  two  of  the  men  slightly  wounded. 
Yours,  &c.,  T.  H.  P. 

We  give  below  an  extract  from  the  columns  of 
the  Defender,  inviting  attention  to  the  correspond 
ence  from  the  51st  P.  Y.: 

"So  many  of  our  readers  and  the  public  generally  are  in 
terested  in  the  movements  of  the  51st  that  we  continue  the  in 
teresting  letters  from  that  source  in  this  week's  paper,  to  the 
exclusion  of  other  matters.  We  finish  the  communications 
now  on  hand,  and  we  hope  hereafter  to  give  more  attention  to 
local  matters." 


326     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

We  give  below  a  letter  signed  "  D.  G.  M."  pub 
lished  in  the  Defender,  leaving  no  doubt  on  the  mind 
of  the  writer  of  this  that  the  author  is  the  worthy 
Chaplain  of  the  51st,  Rev.  Gr.  D.  Mallory.  He  being 
in  feeble  health  while  at  Milldale,  was  left  in  the 
old  camp  at  that  place,  along  wiih  the  sick  and 
convalescent  of  the  regiment,  while  it  was  after 
Johnston  : 


"MILLDALE,  Vickuburg, 
"It  is  the  Fourth  of  July  night.  I  had  retired;  for  it  is 
said  of  Americans  that  they  never  'go  to  bed,'  but  always 
'retire.'  I  am  sure  the  broad  clean  bed,  waiting  patiently  for 
me  at  home,  would  blush  to  hear  me  call  the  thing  I  sleep  on 
here  a  bed.  I  had  retired  ;  that  is  to  say.  I  had  taken  off  my 
boots,  had  carefulty  removed  a  big  black  bug  from  the  inside 
of  my  trowsers,  had  tucked  the  trowsers  legs  into  my  stock 
ings,  as  some  slight  protection  against  the  prying  officiousness 
of  bugs,  fleas,  gnats  and  mnsquitocs,  not  desiring  to  collect 
there  an  entomological  museum,  had  lain  down  on  my  camp 
cot,  and  covered  my  face  and  hands  with  a  musquito  net,  with 
some  faint  hope  of  composing  myself  to  sleep. 

"  I  was  listening  to  a  concert  sung  in  all  the  parts  known  to 
music  —  and  unknown  —  by  those  interesting  creatures,  who 
sought  admission  to  my  castle  with  all  the  perseverance  and 
persuasiveness  of  him  who  won  the  ear  and  heart  of  Parley, 
the  Porter.  The  air  was  saturated  with  the  sounds  of  myriads 
of  katydids  and  locusts,  and  the  thousand  tribes  of  insects 
which  in  a  southern  forest  make  night  noisy.  A  toad  was  hop 
ping  along  under  my  bed.  I  knew  that  a  few  yards  off  were 
ugly  lizards,  green  and  brown  and  gray.  In  the  thickest  of 
the  gully  at  my  right  were  snakes,  if  not  '  gorgons  and  chime 
ras  dire.'  Along  the  road  in  the  hollow  two  hundred  yards  to 
my  left,  rattled  the  long  train  of  pontoons  pushing  forward  to 
the  front  that  the  9th  Corps  might  cross  the  Big  Black.  I  was 
thinking  of  the  fall  of  Vicksburg  when  the  moon  arose. 

"  The  circumstances  in  which  I  saw  the  moon  rise  on  this 
night  of  the  eventful  Fourth  of  July,  1863,  were  very  peculiar. 
The  quarters  are  on  a  hill  top  which,  in  every  direction  but  the 
east,  terminates  in  very  abrupt  and  steep  hillsides,  falling  down 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      327 

into  the  little  valley  or  hollow  below.  The  front  of  the  tent 
and  the  foot  of  my  bed  are  towards  the  east,  looking  out  along 
the  top  of  this  ridge  or  hill.  Along  the  side  of  the  hill  runs  a 
line  of  rifle  pits,  and  on  the  ridge  to  the  east,  in  front  of  the 
quarters,  is  a  bastion  where  the  guns  of  a  battery  have  for  a 
week  past  been  looking  out  patiently,  but  in  vain,  for  the  rebel 
Johnston.  All  sides  of  the  tent  are  raised  as  high  up  from  the 
ground  as  they  can  be,  so  that  really  the  tent  is  all  roof,  and 
lying  on  my  cot  I  can  look  out  in  every  direction  over  the  hills. 
I  was  lying  here  on  my  back  looking  out  through  the  musquito 
bar  at  my  feet  and  thinking  of  Vicksburg,  which  had  just  sur 
rendered  to  Grant.  My  feet  showed  distinctly  against  the  dis 
tant  sky  when  the  moon  rose  above  the  horizon,  behind  the 
soles  of  my  feet,  and  peered  over  my  toes.  The  moon  was 
what  the  astronomers  call  'gibbous,'  that  is,  awfully  swelled 
on  one  side,  so  that  the  'man  in  the  moon,'  as  he  peeped  over 
my  toes  and  laughed  at  me — for  I  saw  him  laugh — looked  like 
a  boy  very,  very  bad  with  the  mumps  in  one  cheek. 

"As  I  said,  I  was  thinking  of  Vicksburg.  Great  prepara 
tions  had  been  made  for  a  Fourth  of  July  attack  on  the  city, 
and  for  its  capture.  There  were  180  immense  siege  guns  in 
position  ready  to  open  fire  on  the  doomed  city.  It  was  ex 
pected  that  the  capture  would  occasion  great  loss  of  life  and 
limb,  and  all  the  steamers  were  ready  to  receive  the  wounded 
and  carry  them  North  at  once,  to  spare  them  from  this  fatal 
climate.  The  Imperial,  being  the  fastest  boat  here,  was  ready 
to  take  the  news  of  the  capture  immediately  to  Cairo,  where  it 
could  be  telegraphed  all  over  the  country.  A  week  ago  the 
principal  work  of  the  rebels  was  blown  up  and  Fort  Hill  was 
taken  ;  yesterday  (the  3d)  another  fort  was  taken  by  the  same 
process,  three  of  the  rebels  being  blown  from  their  works  into 
the  Federal  camp.  When  all  was  ready  for  the  final  attack  the 
rebel  works  were  ornamented  along  the  line  with  flags  of  truce, 
and  instead  of  a  bloody  fight  a  bloodless  victory  crowned  the 
great  national  festival. 

"  Early  in  the  morning  I  listened  with  all  my  ears  for  the 
opening  of  the  fight,  but  heard  only  the  national  salute  to  the 
Day.  I  say  'all  my  ears,'  not  referring  to  the  size,  but  the 
number  of  them,  and  meaning,  as  the  French  say,  'all  two' 
(tout  deux)  of  them. 

"A  happy  day,  and  a  happy,  because  bloodless,  victory. 
For  four  days  the  rebels  in  Vicksburg  had  lived  on  one  scanty 


328      HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

meal  a  day,  looking  in  vain  for  help  from  Johnston.  When 
they  surrendered  they  had  only  enough  for  one  meal  left,  and  I 
doubt  not  they  would  have  held  out  one  day  longer  if  it  were  not 
for  the  great  and  useless  loss  of  life  which  must  result  from  the 
attack  which  they  knew  Grant  was  about  to  make.  We  shall 
need  to  make  heavy  drafts  on  our  commissary  stores  to  supply 
these  23,000  starved  prisoners. 

"It  is  reported  that  Port  Hudson  has  also  fallen,  and  that 
20,000  prisoners  were  taken  there.  But  the  news  is  so  good 
that  we  are  afraid  to  believe  it. 

"  Vicksburg  having  surrendered,  twro  divisions  of  Grant's 
army  were  left  in  charge  of  the  town  and  the  prisoners,  and 
this  very  day  the  rest  of  his  army  immediately  crossed  the  Big 
Black  river  below,  while  our  9th  Corps  crossed  above,  and 
have  all  started  off  in  hot  pursuit  of  Johnston.  With  Grant 
below  him  and  Parke  above  him,  and  an  immense  cavalry 
force  in  his  rear  approaching  from  Corinth,  Johnston  may  find 
himself  in  a  jug  with  the  stopper  in. 

"Well,  I  was  thinking  of  these  things,  and  wishing  we 
might  soon  be  ordered  North,  when  the  '  man  in  the  moon,' 
with  his  swelled  cheek,  peeped  over  my  toes  and  laughed  at 
my  misery  as  he  saw  my  hands  and  face  disfigured  almost  be 
yond  recognition  by  musquito  bites. 

"  What  with  the  horrible,  sickening  heat,  and  the  painful 
itching  of  hands  and  face,  and  the  tormenting  songs  of  the  in 
sects,  who  sang,  'Fee,  fi,  fo,  fum,  I  smell  the  blood  of  a  Yan 
kee  mun,'  and  the  hideous  noise  that  filled  the  air  and  filled 
my  ears,  and  the  provoking  sneer  of  the  moon  as  it  rose  higher 
and  higher,  I  was  driven  out  of  bed  at  midnight,  and  so  sat 
down  to  write  you  this ;  first  throwing  sticks  into  a  neighbor 
ing  tree  to  drive  off  some  frightful  ill-omened  bird  of  night, 
which  had  kept  up  a  distressing  screech  for  an  hour  past,  more 
gloomy  than  'The  Raven's'  dolorous  'Nevermore.' 

"Goodnight.  D.  G.  M." 

When  the  regiment  arrived  at  Sherman's  Land 
ing,  in  Louisiana,  it  encamped  directly  at  the  fam 
ous  "cut  off,"  or  canal,  where  the  Mississippi  Fleet 
was  to  traverse  the  river  to  pass  the  stronghold, 
Yicksburg.  On  the  south  bank  of  the  curved  part 
of  the  river,  close  in  to  the  shore  for  shelter,  lay 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      329 

several  mortar  boats,  dropping  their  ponderous  shells 
of  two  hundred  pounds  each  into  the  city. 

This  was  an  interesting  sight  to  the  majority  of 
the  men  of  the  51st,  for  it  was  the  first  mortar  firing 
that  they  had  ever  seen.  A  great  many  of  them 
had  purchased  field  glasses,  and  they  were  levelled 
on  the  besieged  city  with  much  satisfaction.  Ani 
mate  things  were  quite  visible  in  it  to  the  naked  eye, 
and  to  get  a  glimpse  at  the  beleagured  place  caused 
the  troops  to  assemble  en  masse.  The  enemy  opened 
a  few  rifled  guns  to  disperse  the  "  Yankees'  inquisi 
tive  gaze,"  and  fired  several  rifle  shells  for  that  pur 
pose,  but  without  much  effect,  as  the  "Yankees" 
were  not  to  be  driven  away  by  such  means.  Each 
one  being  enrapt  with  the  panoramic  view  before 
him,  loitered  there  until  the  enemy,  in  order  to  force 
them  to  go,  sent  in  a  perfect  shower  of  heavy  shells, 
which  partly  had  the  desired  effect. 

After  the  men  retired  to  their  quarters  the  shelling 
ceased,  and  they  prepared  themselves  a  cup  of  cof 
fee,  and  indulged  in  a  few  moments  of  piscatorial 
sport,  Lieut.  Jacob  P.  Brooke  leading  the  van  in 
catching  big  "  catties,"  he  having  caught  two  weigh 
ing  respectively  twenty-one  and  thirty- five  pounds. 
Others  fished,  but  had  no  luck  like  his. 

The  friends  of  the  regiment  had  heard  nothing 
definite  as  to  the  whereabouts  of  the  51st,  the  mails 
being  so  very  irregular,  respecting  which  notice  was 
given  in  the  Defender  of  the  arrival  of  a  batch  of 
letters  from  its  correspondent,  wrhich  appeared  in  the 
columns  of  that  paper  Aug.  18,  1863,  viz.: 

"Our  valued  and  prompt  correspondent  (PARKER)  T.  H.  P. 
has  sent  us  several  more  of  his  letters,  keeping  us  posted  up  in 
the  movements  and  doings  of  the  51  st  regiment.  Although 

15* 


330     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

these  letters  date  back  several  weeks,  yet  the  last  bring  us  up 
to  a  late  date,  and  they  have  all  arrived  within  the  past  few 
days.  We  shall  endeavor  to  make  room  lor  them  all  in  next 
week's  Defender.  The  last  letter  was  dated  near  Snyder's 
Bluff,  Mississippi,  where  they  have  plenty  of  good  water.  The 
regiment  expected  to  get  back  to  their  "  Old  Kentucky  Home  " 
soon.  So  let  our  friends  and  the  friends  of  the  51st  look  out 
for  an  interesting  correspondence  in  next  week's  paper." 

In  the  next  week's  edition  appeared  letters  dated 
respectively  July  13th,  17th  and  27th,  1863;  the 
following  notice  heading  them  : 

"We  have  other  letters  from  the  51st  regiment  on  hand  for 
next  week's  paper.  We  are  thus  enabled  to  let  the  many 
friends  of  this  regiment  know  what  they  have  been  doing. 
We  are  under  great  obligations  to  the  regular  contributor, 
'  T.  H.  P.'  The  letters  next  week  are  an  interesting  continu 
ance  of  the  doings  of  the  51st." 

CITY  OP  JACKSON,  Miss., 
July  nth,  18G3. 

Here  we  are,  pitching  into  his  honor,  Joe  Johnston,  with 
both  iron  and  lead,  and  Yankee  like,  I  guess  he  is  getting  rather 
the  worst  ot  it,  too.  I  wrote  my  last  to  you  while  lying  in  the 
woods,  one  an.d  a  half  miles  on  the  west  side  of  the  Big  Black. 
We  left  there  on  Tuesday,  the  7th  ;  our  advance  had  been 
skirmishing  all  night,  and  succeeded  in  driving  the  rebels  from 
that  side  of  the  river.  Our  loss  was  one  killed  and  ten  wounded. 
We  crossed  the  Big  Black  river  about  3  P.  M.  of  that  same  day. 
Johnston  kept  falling  back  towards  Jackson  under  the  severe 
pressure  of  our  troops,  and  our  forces  succeeded  in  driving  him 
behind  his  fortifications  at  Jackson,  and  on  the  8th  inst.  the 
battle  for  the  city  was  duly  inaugurated  and  has  been  kept  up 
both  day  and  night,  without  intermission,  up  to  this  writing. 

Our  battery,  belonging  to  the  2d  Brigade,  met  with  an  acci 
dent  while  crossing  the  Big  Black.  The  bridge  was  a  frail, 
temporary  structure,  and  the  immense  weight  of  the  six  heavy 
horses  and  the  caisson  full  of  ammunition  caused  it  to  give  way, 
precipitating  the  whole  mass  into  the  river,  (fifteen  feet  deep.) 
The  caisson  being  filled  with  shot  and  shell  it  sank  to  the  bot 
tom  of  the  river,  and  before  the  drivers  could  cut  the  two 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      331 

tongue  horses  loose  they  were  drowned,  but  the  four  other 
horses  were  cut  loose  and  were  got  out  in  safety.  The  Big  Black 
river  is  a  narrow  sluggish  stream,  not  being  over  thirty-five 
or  forty  yards  wide,  but  from  fifteen  to  thirty  feet  in  depth. 

On  the  day  that  our  regiment  crossed  the  river,  although  our 
progress  was  somewhat  tardy,  yet  none  of  us  experienced  as 
hard  a  march  since  we  have  been  out,  as  on  that  day.  The 
rajrs  of  the  sun  actually  bore  us  down  to  the  ground.  Two 
men  of  the  llth  N.  H.  died  on  the  march  from  sun  stroke,  and 
there  were  a  large  number  of  coup  de  soliel  cases  in  our  brigade. 
We  marched  until  10  o'clock  of  that  night ;  about  sundown 
a  terrific  thunder  storm  arose  and  continued  nearly  all  night. 
Most  of  us  had  no  covering  along  with  us  and  we  spent  an  un 
comfortable  night  I  assure  you,  in  our  wet  clothing  and  on  the 
wet  ground,  with  a  wet  covering  over  us,  of  clouds  ;  but  such 
is  a  soldier's  life,  and  we  must  take  the  bitter  with  the  sweet, 
only  the  sweet  don't  come  quite  as  often  as  the  bitter,  nor  does 
it  last  so  long,  but  we  can  stand  it  all  should  it  be  all  bitter, 
for  we  have  become  inured  to  both  toil  and  danger,  and  sel 
dom  give  either  a  casual  thought. 

On  the  8th  orders  were  issued  for  each  company  to  capture 
a  mule,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  water  to  the  regiment  dur 
ing  the  pending  battle.  It  was  not  long  after  the  order  was 
issued  before  the  boys  had  complied  with  it  by  leading  into 
our  lines  about  a  dozen  mules,  which  have  proven  themselves 
invaluable  in  keeping  us  supplied  with  water,  which  has  to  be 
brought  from  great  distances. 

We  took  up  the  line  of  march  again  at  3  p.  M.,  on  the  8th 
inst.,  and  proceeded  out  on  the  Clinton  road,  where  at  night 
we  halted  and  bivouacked  for  that  night.  On  the  9th,  at  day 
light,  we  started  off  again  and  took  another  road  that  led  us  to 
the  left  of  Jackson,  and  at  dark  halted  for  the  night  four  miles 
north  of  Jackson.  On  the  10th  we  left  our  knapsacks  in  the 
woods  under  a  small  guard,  and  then  advanced  on  towards  the 
enemy.  At  6  o'clock  A.  M.,  we  crossed  the  railroad  running 
north  from  Jackson,  at  10  o'clock  that  night  we  laid  on  our 
arms  near  the  plantation  mansion  of  the  rebel,  Col.  Oscar  J. 
Stuart.  We  put  out  our  pickets  about  thirty  yards  in  our  ad 
vance  and  went  to  sleep,  being  much  fatigued  and  not  a  little 
hungry.  On  the  llth  we  pushed  our  way  through  all  obstacles 
until  we  arrived  on  the  extreme  front  and  within  close  range 
of  the  rebel  breastworks,  and  here  we  found  the  bullets  and 


332     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

shells  flying  about  in  a  careless  manner,  with  their  rip,  buzz, 
whirr  and  chuck,  tor  each  missile  has  its  own  peculiar  sound, 
and  if  a  head  should  get  a  little  above  the  crest  of  the  hill  it 
would  very  instinctively  bow  it  to  the  ground,  that  would 
somtimes  endanger  the  nasal  appendage  from  being  brought 
in  too  close  a  contact  with  mother  earth.  We  supported  the 
skirmishers  for  several  days  and  it  is  a  very  unenviable  position 
to  be  in  so  long,  to  lay  day  and  night  on  one's  stomach  for 
three  or  four  days  at  a  time,  and  the  balls  continually  flying  over 
head,  each  one  admonishing  you  to  lay  still  closer  and  more 
quiet.  The  9th  Corps  had  not  a  very  high  opinion  of  the 
western  mode  of  fighting,  it  is  too  tedious  to  us  eastern  troops. 
Had  this  department  been  under  a  general  of  the  Virginia 
department,  the  taking  of  Jackson  would  not  have  occupied 
more  than  two  days.  The  rebel  works  would  have  been  car 
ried  by  assault  on  the  second  day,  even  if  attended  with  great 
slaughter.  But  the  western  plan  saves  far  more  lives  by  its 
cautionary  movements  and  I  believe  attended  with  far  more 
success,  but  we  are  impatient  to  see  Jackson  succumb  to  the 
force  that  is  in  his  front.  Yesterday,  the  12th,  was  by  far  the 
hottest  day  of  the  fight  so  far.  There  have  been  no  casualties 
in  our  regiment  save  one  up  to  the  present  time.  Sergt.  Ben 
jamin  White,  of  Co.  F,  was  slightly  wounded  in  the  left  temple  ; 
he  was  taken  off  the  field  and  is  now  improving  very  fast,  being 
able  to  walk  about.  Your  humble  correspondent  also  made 
a  very  lucky  escape  yesterday.  While  in  the  act  of  raising 
my  rifle  to  get  aim  on  a  "gray  back"  who  was  walking  very 
coolly  on  the  parapet  of  the  fort,  a  minie  ball  struck  my  gun 
near  the  muzzle,  tearing  the  top  band  off  and  cutting  itself  in 
two  pieces  and  running  along  the  stock  to  near  the  middle 
band,  when  it  glanced  off  and  struck  me  in  the  thigh,  causing 
a  few  hours'  lameness.  Last  night  picks  and  shovels  were 
brought  out  and  we  "went  in"  for  digging  rifle-pits,  and  now 
to-day  we  find  them  a  great  advantage  in  saving  of  both  life 
and  limbs.  Our  position  being  on  the  extreme  left,  the  rifle- 
pits  extend  now  from  one  extremity  to  the  other.  Our  batteries 
occupying  a  range  of  hills  in  our  rear,  and  our  shot  and  shells, 
with  those  of  the  rebels,  keep  up  a  lively  commotion  in  the  air 
directly  over  cur  heads,  as  they  pass  and  repass  each  other  in 
their  lightning  speed.  I  must  close,  and  I  hope  in  my  next 
to  be  able  to  say  that  Jackson,  the  proud  capital  of  Mississippi, 
is  in  undisputed  possession  of  loyal  troops.  Yours,  &c., 

T.  II.  P. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      333 

JACKSON,  Miss.,  July  l!tli,  1863. 

This  has  been  another  glorious  day  in  the  history  of  the  51st 
P.  V.  This  morning,  at  six  o'clock  and  thirty-five  minutes, 
we  stacked  our  guns  in  the  main  street  of  the  stubbornly  fought 
for  Capital  of  the  State  of  Mississippi,  in  front  of  the  Capitol 
building.  The  beleaguered  city  of  Vicksburg  having  surren 
dered  to  Gen.  Grant  at  10  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  4th 
inst.,  we  immediately  packed  up  our  "knapsacks"  and  started 
off  on  a  march  that  same  afternoon  towards  the  Big  Black  river 
to  pay  our  respects  to  his  Excellency,  (alias  Gen.)  Joe  John 
ston,  who  was  loitering  in  that  vicinity  with  his  "cohort  of 
rebel  warriors."  After  taking  a  circuitous  route,  our  advance 
came  up  with  him  at  the  Big  Black  on  Sunday,  the  5th,  and 
considerable  skirmishing  commenced,  when  he  was  driven 
across  the  river  with  some  small  loss,  and  still  smaller  on  our 
side.  On  the  evening  of  the  5th  we  halted  in  a  woods  within 
two  miles  of  the  Big  Black,  awaiting  the  construction  of  a 
bridge  suitable  for  infantry  and  artillery  to  cross  on.  By  three 
o'clock,  P.  M.,  of  the  7th  it  was  sufficiently  finished  for  infantry 
to  cross,  and  ice  did  cross.  I  gave  you  in  my  lust  all  of  any  in 
terest  up  to  the  time  of  writing.  I  now  begin  where  that  one 
ended. 

About  3  o'clock,  p.  M.,  on  the  13th,  the  rebels  showed  an 
uneasy  spirit,  and  displayed  their  lines  by  them  all  raising  upon 
their  feet  with  bayonets  fixed.  We  taking  that  for  a  cue  to  a 
bayonet  charge,  the  51st,  under  command  of  Lieut.  Col.  Schall, 
were  instantly  brought  to  their  feet,  and  fixing  their  bayonets 
were  determined  to  stand  and  receive  the  charge.  We  had 
been  supporting  another  regiment  in  our  front,  who,  unlike  the 
51st  P.  V.,  became  highly  excited,  and  becoming  panic-stricken, 
fled  from  their  post,  leaving  their  guns,  haversacks  and  us  to 
our  fate,  let  it  be  what  it  might.  But  it  was  not  so  with  the 
51st;  instead  of  fleeing  from"rebel  bayonets  we  formed  a  close 
line  and  advanced  to  the  ci\  st  of  the  hill  and  laid  down  until 
the  rebels  should  get  within  twenty  or  thirty  yards  of  us,  and 
then  it  would  have  been  our  turn  to  have  jumped  to  our  feet 
and  poured  a  volley  into  their  grizzled  ranks  and  made  our 
charge,  but,  from  what  cause  I  am  unable  to  say,  the  rebs  did 
not  make  the  attempted  charge,  but  we  laid  awaiting  their 
coming  until  near  sundown,  and  finding  them  non  esl  we  went 
back  to  our  original  position.  It  was  nearly  an  hour  after  we 


334     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

fixed  ba}'onets  before  the  boys  of  the  frightened  regiment  re 
turned  to  their  post,  and  as  they  did  come  back  they  came  very 
sneaking  and  looked  self-condemned.  On  the  morning  of  the 
14th,  at  daylight,  we  were  relieved  by  the  1st  Division  of  the 
9th  Corps  ;  we  then  fell  back  near  a  mile  to  the  rear  ot  the  In 
sane  Asylum,  and  camped  in  the  woods.  We  scarcely  had 
stacked  arms  before  our  boys  were  down  and  locked  in  the 
arms  of  Morpheus,  and  enjoyed  "  tired  nature's  sweet  restorer  " 
to  their  hearts'  content.  They  needed  all  the  rest  that  they 
could  get,  for  they  had  not  had  an  hour's  complacent  rest  for 
ten  days.  Our  commissary  stores  are  getting  very  low.  We 
have  now  been  several  days  on  half  rations  of  sugar  and  three- 
quarters  rations  of  crackers  or  hard  bread,  and  the  result  is  the 
boys  have  to  hunt  a  good  bit  of  their  own  rations  by  making 
raids  into  cornfields  for  boiling  ears.  On  the  morning  of  the 
14th,  Johnston  sent  in  a  flag  of  truce,  asking  to  suspend  hostili 
ties  until  4  o'clock,  p.  M.  of  that  same  day,  to  give  him  a  chance 
to  bury  his  dead,  and  at  the  same  time  for  us  to  come  and  bury 
our  dead,  who  laid  inside  of  their  lines,  who  had  fallen  there 
during  several  charges  made  by  our  centre  and  right  brigades. 
The  flag  of  truce  was  granted,  the  dead  buried,  as  soon  as  4 
p.  M.  arrived,  the  cannons  began  belching  forth  their  fire  in 
tones  of  thunder,  and  soon  another  "batch"  of  victims  were 
ready  for  the  sacred  rites  of  sepulture. 

On  the  15th  we  moved  our  camp  to  a  more  desirable  location, 
but  water  is  our  only  trouble  here,  or  we  would  be  contented 
to  stay  here  a  few  days,  but  there  is  no  water  except  what  can 
be  got  out  of  stagnant  mud-puddles  and  horse-ponds,  where 
man  and  horse  drink  out  of  the  erne  puddle.  A  detail  was 
made  of  400  men  out  of  our  brigade,  on  the  loth,  for  a  recon- 
noitering  party  ;  their  object  was  to  force  their  way  to  the  Pearl 
river,  in  the  rear  of  Jackson,  to  find  a  ford  or  suitable  place  to 
construct  a  bridge  to  cross,  for  the  purpose  of  investing  the 
city  and  laying  siege  to.it.  The  reconnoisance  proved  succes- 
ful,  they  finding  a  good  place  for  a  crossing  ;  they  were  seen 
on  the  river  banks  by  the  rebel  cavalry,  and  to  that  I  attribute 
the  evacuation  of  Jackson  on  the  morning  of  the  17th,  at  2 
o'clock,  for  a  rebel  prisoner  told  me  that  they  had  seen  our 
men,  and  it  was  reported  to  Johnston,  and  he  previously  had 
heard  that  Banks  was  coming  up  in  his  rear  with  his  Port 
Hudson  forces,  and  he  believing  that  we  were  trying  to  get  our 
coils  around  him,  a  la  Peml&rton,  he  found  it  more  safe  in  get- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  335 

> 

ting  his  forces  into  Alabama,  than  to  remain  in  such  jeopardy, 
and  further,  Benjamin's  N.  Y  Battery  was  ordered  to  tire  one 
shot  every  rive  minutes,  both  day  and  night,  until  the  night  of 
the  16th,  when  it  ceased.  This,  Johntson  took  to  be  done  for 
the  purpose  of  engrossing  his  attention,  while  our  forces  were 
operating  in  his  rear.  One  hundred  of  the  reconnoitering  party 
were  out  of  our  regiment,  and  on  returning  to  camp  they  cap 
tured  twenty  or  thirty  head  of  neat  cattle,  and  brought  them  into 
camp.  At  2  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  16th  we  again  went 
to  the  front  to  relieve  the  1st  division,  which  had  been  out  forty- 
eight  hours.  We  moved  half  a  mile  still  further  to  the  extreme 
left,  and  supported  the  skirmishers  for  twenty-four  hours,  and 
while  lying  here  there  was  some  very  hard  fighting  on  the  riglt 
and  right  of  centre.  I  must  here  state,  the  boys,  finding  it 
impossible  to  obtain  tobacco,  even  at  the  liberal  price  of  $2  for 
a  twenty-cent  plug,  they  were  induced  to  satisfy  their  cravings 
by  smoking  dry  weeds,  but  now,  to-day,  they  are  "flush"  with 
tobacco,  which  they  found  large  quantities  of  in  this  city,  and 
appropriated  it  to  their  own  use.  I  will  here  also  mention  how 
the  evacuation  of  this  city  was  discovered  by  the  left.  At  2 
o'clock  this  morning  we  were  taken  down  a  deep  ravine,  and 
placed  on  picket  within  a  fewT  yards  of  the  rebel  rifle-pits.  As 
soon  as  the  light  began  to  make  its  appearance,  Capt.  Geo.  W. 
Bisbing,  of  Co.  I,  was  disposed  to  feel  the  position  of  the  enemy. 
As  we  were  ignorant  of  the  ground,  it  being  a  new  place  to  us, 
he  sallied  forth  outside  of  our  rifle-pits  to  make  an  individual 
reconnoisance  ;  when  Corp.  Win.  Dignan,  of  Co.  D,  asked 
permission  of  Capt.  Bisbing  to  accompany  him  in  his  tour,  it 
was  granted,  and  the  two  directed  their  steps  to  the  nearest 
rebel  rifle-pit,  and  to  their  satisfaction  found  them  empty. 
They  had  evacuated  them  about  one  hour  before  the  discovery. 
Yours,  &c.,  T.  II.  P. 

MlLLDALE,  NEAR    SNTDEIl'S   BLUFF,    MlSS., 

July  27th,  1863. 

Well,  here  we  are,  back  at  our  old  camp  ground,  where, 
thank  God  !  there  is  no  more  suffering  for  plenty  of  good  water. 
We  left  camp,  in  rear  of  the  Insane  Asylum,  near  Jackson,  on 
Monday  morning  at  4  o'clock,  and  marched  till  noon  of  that 
same  day,  when  we  came  to  a  halt  at  4  o'clock  p.  M.,  at  or  near 
the  town  of  Clinton.  We  had  a  good  though  much  needed  rest, 
and  at  the  appointed  time  took  up  the  line  of  march  again,  and 


336     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

marched  until  11  o'clock  that  night,  making  about  twenty-two 
miles  under  heavy  knapsacks,  a  scorching  sun  through  the  day, 
almost  impenetrable  clouds  of  dust,  and  a  great  scarcity  of 
water,  and  also  a  scarcity  of  rations.  Many  of  us  laid  down 
that  night  supperless,  being  too  much  fatigued  to  prepare  what 
little  rations  we  had  for  eating.  On  the  next  morning  at  4 
o'clock  we  were  again  on  the  march  ;  the  orders  came  so  un 
expectedly  early  that  only  a  few,  if  any,  were  fortunate  enough 
to  break  their  fast,  which  caused  not  a  few  complaints  from 
those  who  went  to  sleep  without  their  suppers.  We  were  some 
what  favored  in  our  march  to-day  by  its  being  a  little  cloudy, 
and  a  great  part  of  it  was  through  deeply  shaded  woods,  and, 
still  more,  the  51st  was  the  extreme  right  regiment ;  conse 
quently,  being  at  the  front  or  head  of  the  column,  we  were 
saved  the  necessity  of  snuffing  up  so  much  dust,  for  nothing 
had  travelled  over  the  road  since  the  heavy  rain  which  fell 
about  ten  days  or  so  before.  We  marched  until  10  o'clock  A.  M., 
and  then  halted.  As  soon  as  we  came  to  a  halt  fires  were 
lighted,  and  each  one  busily  engaged  in  cooking  breakfast. 
Cattle  were  killed  and  rations  served  out  to  us  for  the  day,  and 
after  each  had  regaled  themselves  with  such  food  as  they  had, 
the  major  part  of  the  men  laid  themselves  down  for  a  sleep. 
At  3  o'clock  p.  M.  we  again  started  off,  and  marched  until 
within  two  miles  of  the  Big  Black  river,  where  we  arrived  about 
9  o'clock  at  night,  and  bivouacked  in  a  cornfield.  On  Wednes 
day  morning  we  were  moved  into  a  woods  adjoining  the  corn 
field,  where  there  was  plenty  of  water,  both  for  drinking  and 
bathing  purposes.  In  this  woods  we  laid  over  until  4  o'clock 
p.  M.,  for  the  purpose,  I  was  told,  to  give  the  stragglers  a  chance 
of  catching  up  to  their  regiments  previous  to  crossing  the  Big 
Black  ;  for,  to  tell  you  the  truth,  fully  fifty  per  cent,  of  the 
corps  were  stragglers,  and  often  when  the  column  came  to  a 
halt,  some  companies  could  not  stack  more  than  five  or  six  guns. 
Quite  a  number  fell  dead  while  inarching,  from  excessive  heat 
and  weariness.  Sore  feet  was  very  prevalent ;  diarrhoea  also. 
At  4  o'clock  P.  M.  of  Wednesday  we  were  once  more  on  our 
road,  feeling  considerably  refreshed  from  our  shady  rest  and  a 
bath  in  a  clear,  limpid  stream  that  coursed  its  way  through  our 
resting  place.  We  crossed  the  Big  Black  at  5  o'clock,  amid  a 
suddenly  sprung  up  thunder  storm,  which  continued  with 
unabated  fury  for  near  an  hour.  Gum  blankets  were  of  great 
value  then,  but  there  were  very  few  of  them.  It  was  hard 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      337 

marching  on  account  of  the  dust  before  the  rain  ;  it  was  mor.e 
"horrid  nice  "  after  it,  for  the  great  depth  of  the  mud  baffled 
all  attempts  at  its  description.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  it  was  pre 
ferable  to  have  the  dust  twice  as  bad  as  it  had  been  before  the 
rain.  We  marched  till  11  o'clock  that  night,  and  then  biv 
ouacked  along  the  road-side  at  "McCall's."  At  5  o'clock  on 
Thursday  morning  we  left  "McCall's,"  and  reached  this  place 
(home  to  me)  about  9  A.  M.,  and  went  into  camp,  where  we 
are  now  awaiting  for  transportation  to  take  us  (we  suppose)  to 
Kentucky.  We  have  orders  to  go  on  board  at  a  moment's 
notice.  When  we  left  the  place  first,  we  left  a  few  sick  in  the 
hospital,  but  on  our  return  we  find  the  most  of  them  enjoying 
once  more  robust  health.  I  am  sorry  to  have  to  record  the 
deaths  of  a  few  of  our  comrades.  Paul  H.  Custard,  private,  in 
Co.  C  ;  he  went  with  us  on  our  march  to  Jackson,  was  taken 
sick  while  on  the  march,  and  died  on  the  18th  inst.,  at  Jackson. 
Private  James  Milton,  of  Co.  I,  was  accidentally  killed  on 
Sunday,  the  12th  in^st.,  near  Jackson  ;  he  was  detached  from 
his  company,  and  was  on  headquarter  duty  with  the  wagon- 
train,  going  after  cotton  for  building  fortifications,  and  a  com 
rade  of  his  carelessly  threw  his  gun  into  the  tail  of  the  wagon, 
the  hammer  striking  the  tail-board,  causing  the  cap  to  explode 
and  the  discharge  of  the  gun.  Milton  was  sitting  on  the  seat 
in  the  front  of  the  wagon,  the  ball  entering  his  back  and  came 
out  at  his  breast.  He  lived  about  three  hours,  and  then  breathed 
his  last,  lamented  by  all  who  knew  him.  lie  was  worthy  of  all 
the  respect  we  held  for  him,  for  he  was  a  noble,  generous- 
hearted  soldier.  Private  Reuben  Delia  ven,  also  of  Co.  C,  died 
here  in  the  hospital,  while  we  were  at  Jackson.  The  health  of 
the  regiment  is  not  so  good  as  it  has  been  ;  nearly  every  other 
man  complains  of  diarrhoea  ;  but  now  that  we  are  getting  a 
little  rest  after  our  eight  days'  fight  and  our  hard  marching,  the 
health  of  our  regiment  will  improve  under  the  skill  of  our  sur 
geons — Rineholt  and  Duffell — for  they  fully  understand  their 
onerous  duties,  and  ply  themselves  so  willingly,  and  with  so 
much  kindness,  that  we  emphatically  pronounce  them  the  right 
men  in  the  right  place. 

Gen.  Grant  sends  a  congratulatory  address  to  the  9th  Army 
Corps,  in  which  he  compliments  it  for  its  endurance,  bravery, 
drill,  and  discipline.  In  fact,  he  says  the  9th  Army  Corps  is  the 
best  disciplined  body  of  troops  that  he  has  ever  seen.  That's 
saying  a  good  bit. 

Yours,  &c.,  T.  II.  P. 


338     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

At  the  same  time  appeared  in  the  paper  an  ex 
tract  from  a  letter  in  reference  to  Lieut. -Col.  E. 
Schall's  humane  feelings  towards  his  men. 

Col.  Hartranft  having  been  frequently  called  to  take  charge 
of  other  duties  than  the  command  of  his  regiment,  and  thus 
leaving  the  51st  under  the  command  of  Lieut. -Col.  Edwin 
Schall,  we  have  often  heard  complimentary  things  written 
home  by  the  soldiers  to  their  friends,  of  his  care  over  and  in 
terest  in  his  men.  We  cannot  refrain  from  publishing  the  fol 
lowing  extract,  written  by  a  soldier  in  the  ranks  in  reference  to 
the  attention  the  Lieut. -Col.  bestowed  upon  his  men.  It  proves 
conclusively  that  there  is  a  deep  and  abiding  affection  between 
the  men  and  this  officer: 

"  I  must  not  let  our  Lieut. -Col.  E.  Schall  pass  unnoticed 
in  this  place  for  his  untiring  efforts  to  lighten  the  burden  of  our 
late  inarch  as  much  as  was  in  his  power  to  do.  I  speak  the 
sentiments  of  his  whole  command  when  I  say  his  generous 
deeds  will  live  while  memory  sits  upon  its  throne.  lie  forgot 
himself  in  the  interest  of  his  men,  marching  at  the  head  of  his 
regiment  on  foot,  while  the  leaser  able  to  walk  were  put  upon 
his  horse's  back.  Did  any  other  regimental  commander  make 
such  a  sacrifice  in  the  whole  corps  ?  I  think  not." 


OH  AFTER    IY. 

Leaving  Milldale— McCalPs— News  of  surrender  of  Vicksburg 
— Movement  toward  the  Big  Black — Sherman  in  command — 
Destruction  on  the  march — Tyranny  of  Col.  Le  Gendre — 
Crossing  the  Big  Black— Bad  water — Awful  storm — Corres 
pondence — The  march  to  Jackson — Continuous  fighting — 
Daring  of  Bob  Roberts— Retreat  of  the  rebels— Race  for  the 
Capitol — Triumphant  entry  of  the  51st, 

ON  Monday,  June  29th,  the  regiment  struck  tents 
at  Milldale,  and  moved  out  towards  the  Big  Black 
river  about  nine  miles,  and  went  into  camp  in  a 
woods  at  "  McCall's."  This  move  was  in  anticipation 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  339 

of  the  surrender  of  Gen.  Pemberton  with  his  rebel 
army  in  Vicksburg,  and  to  place  the  troops  in  closer 
proximity  to  Johnston's  army,  to  watch  his  move 
ments  and  to  prevent  him  from  making  any  attempt 
at  rescuing  the  army  then  beseiged  in  Vicksburg. 
Here  the  51st  fitted  up  a  most  comfortable  camp, 
but  it  was  not  to  be  of  much  use,  for  at  10  A.  M. 
on  Saturday,  July  4th,  1863,  Gen.  Grant  received 
the  surrender  of  Vicksburg.  The  fall  of  that  place 
rendered  necessary  an  immediate  movement  against 
Gen.  Joe  Johnston,  who  was  in  strong  force  (28,000) 
on  the  Big  Black  river.  Immediately  after  the  sur 
render  a  courier  made  his  appearance  in  the  road  in 
front  of  the  51st  P.  V.  and  publicly  proclaimed  the 
downfall  of  the  southwestern  key  to  the  great  re 
bellion.  Cheer  upon  cheer  went  up  for  the  great 
victory,  and  the  good  news  filled  the  hearts  of  the 
soldiers  with  sweet  anticipations  of  a  long  and  quiet 
rest  from  exposure  to  the  almost  tropical  sun.  But 
the  work  was  not  yet  done,  for  while  all  hearts  were 
beating  high  at  the  bright  prospect  of  a  speedy  ter 
mination  of  the  war,  orders  came  in  to  be  ready  for 
an  advance  at  12  A.  M.  of  that  day.  Accordingly  at 
the  hour  appointed  the  army  (-11,000)  under  Gen. 
Sherman  was  in  motion,  "  filing  right"  towards  the 
enemy.  The  army  had  divided  into  two  columns 
and  marched  against  Johnston  by  two  different  roads. 
Nearly  all  the  western  troops  took  the  road  to  the 
right,  while  the  9th  Corps  proceeded  on  the  road  to 
the  left.  Col.  Hartranft  in  command  of  the  brigade, 
and  Lieut. -Col.  Schall  of  the  regiment.  Nothing  in 
terfered  with  the  progress  of  the  51st  until  about 
9  P.  M.  when  in  the  Cimmerian  darkness,  the  artil 
lery  so  blocked  up  the  road  that  the  regiment  pitched 


340     HISTOKY    OF    THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

headlong  against  horses,  guns  and  caissons,  produc 
ing  so  much  confusion  that  the  men  were  unable  to 
either  find  the  road  or  their  places  in  the  ranks. 
Lieut. -Col.  Schall  at  once  determined  to  bivouack 
then  and  there  for  the  night,  and  await  the  approach 
of  daylight.  When  it  dawned  such  a  shapeless 
mass  of  confusion  revealed  itself  to  the  army,  that 
they  ceased  to  wonder  why  they  had  all  lost  them 
selves  the  night  before.  Here  was  a  caisson  locked 
in  with  a  wagon,  there  the  artillery  horses  tangled 
up  with  the  mule  teams,  another  place  a  capsized 
gun,  another  or  perhaps  two  or  three  wagons  over 
turned,  and  the  road  filled  with  debris  of  the  wreck 
of  the  several  kinds  of  trains,  all  caused  by  the  in 
tense  darkness  of  the  night  by  which  the  whole 
column  lost  its  way  and  bivouacked  in  a  cotton 
field  instead  of  the  road.  Heavy  black  clouds  like 
wise  assisted  in  making  the  darkness  more  opaque, 
and  almost  felt.  On  Sunday  morning,  July  5th,  the 
column  again  unwound  its  coils  of  confusion,  and 
like  a  huge  anaconda  at  the  start,  slowly  moving  off' 
until  its  whole  length  was  like  one  perfect  moving 
panorama.  The  commanding  officers  of  corps,  divi 
sions,  brigades  and  regiments,  displayed  admirable 
skill  in  the  manner  they  so  promptly  brought  out 
order  and  discipline  from  chaos  and  dire  confusion. 
The  day  opened  beautifully,  clear,  but  hot.  If  there 
is  any  other  word  to  express  intense  heat  besides 
hot,  it  should  be  employed  here,  for  the  latter  only 
conveys  but  a  faint  meaning  of  that  day's  heat. 

The  sufferings  of  the  men  from  sheer  heat  and 
for  the  want  of  water  while  on  this  move,  can  only 
be  known  by  those  who  participated  in  it. 

The  regiment  having  corne  up  by  noon  of  the  oth 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  341 

to  Johnston's  forces  near  the  Big  Black,  it  halted, 
and  bivouacked  in  a  woods  at  the  roadside  oppo 
site  to  a  number  of  large  buildings  belonging  to  an 
extensive  cotton  plantation.  Considerable  skirmish 
ing  took  place,  and  continued  that  afternoon  until 
long  after  dark.  Soon  after  halting  at  this  woods, 
several  batteries  of  western  artillery  came  up  and 
halted  on  the  open  ground  where  stood  the  build 
ings.  After  fixing  up  temporary  quarters  for  them 
selves,  they  mingled  freely  with  the  51st  P.  V.  and 
51st  N.  Y.  and  asked,  "why  have  you  not  fired  those 
buildings?"  being  answered,  "  we  can't  say."  they  re 
marked  "  they've  got  to  come  down,  that's  so  !"  And 
soon  after,  what  had  been  costly  structures,  were 
made  heaps  of  smouldering  ashes.  So  determined 
were  these  western  troops  to  lay  waste  southern 
property,  that  the  column  in  which  the  9th  Corps 
marched,  could  distinguish  the  route  that  Sherman 
was  taking  with  the  right  wing,  although  many 
miles  apart.  Dense  columns  of  black  smoke  reached 
to  the  clouds  and  pointed  out  his  course  by  day, 
and  bright  fires  cast  their  rays  high  up  in  the  sky  at 
night. 

The  regiment  quartered  in  this  woods  until  Tues 
day  the  7th  at  3  p.  M,  (while  the  advance  were 
throwing  a  temporary  bridge  across  the  Big  Black, 
Johnston  having  previously  destroyed  it  and  in  fact 
all  other  bridges  across  that  deep  stream.)  when  it 
began  its  march  again  for  the  river  two  miles  dis 
tant.  But  if  the  heat  had  been  great  previous  to 
this,  the  great  heat  of  the  infernal  regions  only  could 
compare  with  this  Tuesday.  Col.  Le  Gendre  of  the 
51st  N,  Y.  led  the  advance  of  the  brigade,  the  51st 
P.  V.  following  next,  and  when  within  a  few  yards 


342      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST    REGIMENT 

of  the  river,  whose  banks  were  well  shaded  by  a 
thick  growth  of  trees,  came  to  a  halt  (as  a  couple  of 
hours'  more  work  was  necessary  to  complete  the 
bridge  in  order  to  cross)  in  a  sort  of  a  half  basin, 
each  flank  and  rear  being  shut  in  by  high  hills  and 
lofty  eminences,  excluding  from  this  hollow  all 
chances  for  a  circulation  of  air.  This  tyrant  refused 
to  move  his  regiment  up  to  the  inviting  shade,  but 
took  good  caie  to  seek  it  for  himself,  leaving  his 
men  to  suffer  in  the  broiling  sun,  and  compelling 
other  more  humane  officers  from  bringing  their  regi 
ments  up  for  shelter,  as  it  was  too  unmilitary  to 
march  one  regiment  past  another.  Lieut. -Col.  Schall 
begged  of  him  as  a  necessity  and  for  the  safety  of  the 
men,  to  move  nearer  the  shade,  so  his  (Schall's)  men 
could  be  protected  from  the  Lot  sun.  But  this 
pompous  French  gentleman  turned  deaf  ears  to  all 
of  Lieut.  Col.  S.'s  importunities.  Other  regimental 
commanders  appealed  to  him  for  "God's  sake  to  go 
on  out  of  the  scorching  hot  sun,"  but  all  to  no  pur 
pose,  (even  the  threats  and  curses  of  the  enlisted  men 
fell  on  his  ears  as  if  he  was  dead  to  hearing,  to  hu 
mane  feelings  or  anything  pertaining  to  a  man  who 
held  the  lives  of  brave  men  as  something  that  pos 
sessed  the  sense  of  feeling.)  Lieut.-Col.  Schall  find 
ing  that  his  pleadings  could  not  find  a  tender  chord 
in  the  French  colonel's  heart,  he  turned  to  the  men 
and  told  them  to  shelter  themselves  in  whatever  way 
they  could  find  protection  from  the  sun,  besides 
cautioning  them  in  parental  tones  not  to  indulge  too 
freely  in  drinking  water  that  flowed  in  the  sluggish 
river  close  by. 

The  men  taking  him  at    his  word,  sought    such 
shelter  as  they  could  find;  every  little  ragweed  only 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  343 

a  foot  high  was  sought  out,  and  a  head  would  be 
thrust  under  its  branches  to  get  what  little  shade  its 
tiny  leaves  afforded,  but  it  is  impossible  to  describe 
the  agony  of  those  suffering  men,  but  hundreds,  aye, 
thousands!  who  were  down  there  can  bear  me  wit 
ness  when  I  say  it  was  all  that  a  hell  is  represented 
to  be. 

The  obstinacy  of  Col.  Le  Grendre  made  him  very 
unpopular  in  his  own  regiment,  as  well  as  with  the 
officers  and  men  of  the  whole  brigade.  As  everything 
has  an  end,  so  it  was  with  this  torture.  The  bridge 
being  finished  by  5  p.  M.,  the  troops  began  to  cross, 
but  the  exposure  in  this  fiery  furnace  told  severely 
on  the  strength  of  the  men,  for  in  less  than  one  mile 
of  inarching  no  less  than  thirty-five  men  belon-jing 
to  the  35th  Mass,  fell  from  sunstroke,  seventeen  of 
which  proved  fatal.  Fifteen  men  of  the  llth  N.  H. 
received  sunstroke,  two  of  whom  fell  dead.  Several 
of  the  two  51sts  also  suffered  from  sunstroke,  but 
none  fatal,  and  all  this  through  a  man,  unfit  to  have 
the  care  of  anything  with  feeling,  being  clothed  with 
a  little  brief  authority  and  a  pair  of  plated  eagles  on 
his  shoulders;  but  I  am  digressing.  If  in  the  past  it 
was  troublesome  to  find  water,  I  do  not  know  what 
to  call  it  after  the  regiment  had  left  the  river.  From 
that  liver  until  the  regiment  arrived  near  Jackson, 
the  only  water  to  be  obtained  was  from  stagnant 
ponds  in  fields,  where  horses,  mules  and  cattle  all 
rushed  wildly  in  along  with  the  men  to  slake  their 
almost  unquenchable  thirst.  Many  of  those  ponds 
contained  the  carcasses  of  dead  horses,  mules  and 
dogs,  and  were  covered  with  a  nasty  revolting  green 
scum  full  an  inch  thick,  and  as  stringy  as  toasted 
cheese;  the  rushing  in  of  the  animals  for  a  drink 


344      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

would  stir  up  the  mud  and  filth,  making  it  so  thick 
that  it  might  only  be  correctly  compared  to  the 
slime  or  white  of  an  egg.  Other  regiments  suffered 
terribly  by  sickness  from  the  use  of  this  water,  and 
although  the  51st  P.  V.  had  to  use  it  the  same  as  the 
rest,  yet  it  was  surprising  what  little  sickness  it  had 
in  comparison  to  any  and  all  other  regiments. 

About  9  o'clock  at  night  of  the  7th,  while  the 
regiment  was  still  on  the  march,  a  very  terrific 
thunder-storm  burst  in  all  its  fury  on  the  heads 
of  the  marching  troops;  peal  upon  peal  of  the  most 
terrible  and  awful  thunder  that  any  one  ever  heard, 
with  not  the  slightest  intermission,  filled  the  angry 
elements  with  a  deafening  roar.  The  vivid  flashes 
of  lightning  could  only  be  compared  to  the  ignition 
of  floating  air,  the  rain  poured  down  in  fearful  tor 
rents  ;  yet  on  plodded  the  nearly  drowned  soldiers,  but 
so  intensely  bright  was  the  flashes  of  lightning  that 
the  whole  column  came  to  an  involuntary  halt,  as  if 
in  holy  reverence  to  Him  who  rides  and  rules  the 
storms.  It  was  certainly  a  most  singular  thing  to 
see  the  whole  column  halt  as  if  the  command  had 
been  inven  by  one  human  voice.  Not  only  the  men, 
but  the  horses  that  were  ridden  by  the  officers  also 
came  to  a  halt  as  sudden  as  if  shot  dead  at  the 
instant,  nor  with  any  amount  of  urging  with  swords, 
whips  or  spurs  could  the  animals  be  induced  to 
proceed  a  step  further.  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  in  his 
correspondence  to  the  "Defender"  gives  a  beautiful 
account  of  that  night's  storm,  which  we  here  give 
below.  Although  some  paragraphs  are  a  repetition 
of  what  is  told  above,  yet  it  is  full  of  interesting 
matter. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      345 

NEAR  VICKSBURG,  Miss.,  July  17th,  1863. 

"  Vicksburg  has  surrendered!'1'' — At  10  o' ^  clock  McPherson's 
corps  will  take  formal  possession  of  the  City  f"  was  the  shout  of 
a  mounted  officer  as  he  rode  through  our  camp  on  that  bright, 
clear  morning  of  Independence  Day.  Vicksburg,  indeed,  had 
fallen,  and  at  10  o'clock  our  forces  under  McPberson  marched 
into  the  city  and  planted  the  glorious  ensign  over  its  once  proud 
and  defiant,  but  now  humble  and  subdued  people.  Memorable 
as  the  day  already  is,  it  is  doubly  so,  if  possible,  by  the  brilliant 
and  substantial  achievement  of  this  day.  It  is,  indeed,  as  Jeff. 
Davis  has  well  said,  the  "  vital  point,"  and  from  this  hour  we 
can  see  the  end  of  this  wicked  rebellion. 

Now,  that  the  foe  in  our  immediate  front  was  conquered,  and 
his  stronghold  in  our  possession,  it  becomes  necessary  to  pay 
our  respects  to  Johnston,  who  was  threatening  our  rear  and 
promising  deliverance  to  the  beleaguered  garrison  of  Vicksburg. 
It  was  while  all  were  quietly  seated  under  the  many  shade 
trees  discussing  the  news  of  the  day,  that  an  orderly  brought 
in  the  following  order : 

HEAD-QUARTERS,  OTH  ARMY  CORPS, 

NEAR  VICKSBURG,  July  kth,  1863. 
GENERAL  ORDERS,  No.  7. 

All  commanders  will  see  that  their  troops  are  well  provided 
with  five  days'  rations  in  haversacks  and  regimental  wagons, 
cartridges  at  the  rate  of  150  per  man — wagons  not  to  exceed 
three  to  a  regiment,  one  for  ammunition  and  two  for  cooking 
utensils  and  provisions — and  two  ambulances  for  the  sick  and 
wounded.  Great  attention  should  be  paid  to  providing  water, 
for  which  purpose  each  company  should  have  a  pack  mule, 
with  two  small  kegs  on  a  saddle  to  which  the  canteens  of  the 
men  can  be  suspended. 

By  command  of 

(Signed)  Major-General  J.  G.  PARKE. 

NICHOLAS  BOWEN, 

Ass't  Adj't  Gen. 

To  get  ready  for  the  march  was  but  the  work  of  a  moment. 
The  little  shelter  tents  soon  disappeared  from  sight,  knapsacks 
were  packed,  and  at  about  5  o'clock,  the  regiment  was  formed, 
and  stacking  arms,  waited  by  the  roadside  for  the  order  to  move 

16 


346     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

on.  At  six  o'clock  it  came.  Slowly  the  column  moved  over 
the  dusty  road,  the  long  wagon  train  preventing  rapid  progress. 
Darkness  settled  over  us,  but  still  we  moved  on.  It  was  prob 
ably  ten  o'clock  when  the  order  was  given  to  halt,  and  bivouac 
for  the  night.  The  character  of  the  ground  was  far  from  favor 
able  for  troops  to  spend  a  night,  on,  but  it  was  the  best  that 
could  be  done,  and  so  dispensing,  in  a  great  measure,  with  the 
usual  cup  of  coffee,  most  of  us  laid  down  to  find  rest  in  sleep. 

The  march  was  renewed  the  following  morning  at  six  o'clock. 
The  air  at  first  was  cool,  but  as  time  passed  it  grew  warmer. 
We  did  not,  however,  go  far  before  a  halt  was  ordered,  and 
drawing  up  in  line  of  battle  a  little  from  the  roadside,  arms 
were  stacked,  and  the  men  permitted  to  enjoy  a  rest  of  several 
hours.  We  did  not  learn  why  this  long  halt  was  ordered,  but 
suppose  there  was  some  confusion  of  orders,  our  division  mov 
ing  at  the  hour  fixed  for  the  first  division,  and  thus  blocking  up 
our  way. 

It  was  past  noon  when  the  march  was  resumed.  When  we 
say  it  was  warm,  we  mean  it,  as  the  soldiers  with  their  heavy 
knapsacks  upon  their  backs,  can  testify.  We  halted  within 
two  miles  of  the  Big  Black  river,  and  bivouacked  in  the 
woods. 

During  the  night  we  heard  cannonading  for  some  fifteen 
mintites.  As  we  had  heard  of  no  firing  through  the  day, 
many  thought  the  rebels  had  surprised  our  forces,  but  it  did 
not  prove  to  be  so.  The  firing  was  one-sided — our  men  doing 
all  of  it. 

At  mid-day  we  received  orders  to  be  ready  to  leave  at  four 
o'clock  ;  but  when  the  hour  arrived,  it  was  changed  to  an  early 
hour  in  the  morning.  Towards  evening  we  were  favored  with 
a  refreshing  shower,  which  cooled  the  atmosphere  and  laid  the 
dust  that  had  constantly  swept  through  our  camp,  filling  our 
nostrils  with  it.  The  change  was  a  delightful  one,  and  all  felt, 
extremely  happy  with  the  prospect  of  enjoying  a  pure  and 
refreshing  sleep  through  the  night. 

At  noon  on  the  7th  inst.,  we  filed  out  of  the  woods,  and  pro 
ceeded  towards  the  Big  Black  river.  The  heat  was  intense — 
the  bright  rays  of  the  sun  telling  fearfully  upon  the  men.  There 
were  no  trees  to  interpose  themselves  between  it  and  us  to  pro 
tect  us  in  a  great  measure  from  its  effects.  Heavy  clouds  of 
dust  rose  and  encircled  us,  as  if  our  punishment  was  not  already 
enough.  No  pen  can  describe  the  reality.  That  hot  sun 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      347 

shining  down  upon  us  with  all  the  wrath  of  a  large  furnace, 
its  very  brightness  dazzling  your  eyes,  the  close,  stifled  air,  the 
dust,  dust,  dust,  and  the  long  open  fields  over  which  we  moved, 
are  strongly  impressed  upon  the  mind.  And  we  never  can  for 
get  the  weary,  exhausted  soldiers  who  marched  under  this  hot, 
broiling  sun.  How  they  suffered!  Many  laid  down  by  the 
way,  to  be  picked  up  by  the  surgeons  in  a  wild  and  delirious 
state — the  inevitable  result  of  sunstroke.  Some  there  were 
who  fell  down  in  the  ranks,  whom  no  earthly  power  could  re 
store  to  consciousness,  death  having  done  his  work  quickly. 
Yes,  it  was  an  afternoon  long  to  be  remembered.  The  Big- 
Black  is  reached.  We  crossed  this  muddy,  narrow,  but  deep 
stream,  on  a  rude,  hastily  constructed  bridge,  and  pushed  for 
ward  for  the  woods  ahead.  At  last  it  is  reached,  but  it  was 
about  all  that  human  strength  could  accomplish.  We  did  not 
have  all  with  us  when  we  halted,  for  one  by  one  had  sought 
refuge  under  the  shade  trees  by  the  way. 

We  had  especial  cause  to  be  thankful,  for  while  many  in  the 
regiments  of  our  brigade  and  division  were  laid  low  by  sun 
stroke,  all  of  our  men  escaped  it.  And  when  we  again  moved 
on,  most  of  the  men  had  joined  the  regiment,  having  recovered 
from  the  exhaustion  caused  by  the  heat. 

We  leisurely  pursued  our  way  until  near  dusk,  when  an 
hour's  halt  was  ordered,  to  give  the  troops  an  opportunity  to 
prepare  coffee.  The  time  was  well  improved.  Nothing,  as  our 
readers  must  be  aware,  so  refreshes  soldiers  on  the  march  as  a 
warm  cup  of  coffee. 

As  darkness  settled  over  us  we  filed  out  into  the  narrow  road, 
with  our  minds  made  up  for  a  whole  night's  march.  True, 
there  was  no  hot  sun  to  shine  upon  us,  but  still  it  was  very 
close,  and  made  marching  very  hard  for  the  men  ;  but  they, 
almost  to  a  man,  kept  up  with  the  regiment,  though,  in  many 
instances,  doing  injury  to  themselves  by  exerting  themselves  so 
much,  when  they  ought  to  have  been  in  ambulances.  Perhaps 
this  spirit  among  the  men  to  avoid  straggling  behind  is  owing 
to  the  reputation  which  the  regiment  enjoys  among  its  sister 
regiments  for  its  general  good  health,  power  of  endurance  and 
excellent  marching. 

As  the  night  advanced,  heavy  clouds  arose,  little  gales  of  wind 
sprung  up,  the  heavens  grew  darker  and  darker,  the  lightning's 
flash  became  more  vivid,  the  distant  roll  of  thunder  grew 
louder,  large  drops  of  rain  commenced  falling,  and  soon  the 


348     HISTOEY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIEST   REGIMENT 

storm  was  upon  us.  It  was  a  fearful  night!  The  storm  was 
terrible!  Never,  never,  did  we  witness  such  a  night!  The 
lightning  was  incessant — there  was  no  pause,  no  flash  of  light 
now,  then  darkness;  but  there  was  a  continuous  light,  and 
such  sharp  flashes  as  to  fairly  blind  your  eyes,  and  cause  them 
to  suffer  with  pain.  And,  oh!  what  terrific  thunder!  Here 
peal  after  peal,  sharp  and  quick,  startled  us  as  we  stood  in  the 
road.  And  the  rain!  how  it  drenched  one  and  all.  It  seemed 
to  us  as  if  by  a  common  impulse  the  whole  column  halted 
when  the  lightning  was  most  vivid,  the  thunder  most  terrific, 
and  the  rain  most  copious,  as  if  in  humble  recognition  of  the 
power  of  the  Great  above,  and  as  an  acknowledgment  of  the 
weakness  and  utter  helplessness  of  man. 

After  the  storm  had  somewhat  subsided,  we  moved  forward 
about  an  hundred  yards  and  bivouacked  in  the  fields  on  the 
right  and  left  of  the  road.  The  rain  continued  to  fall  through 
the  night,  and  the  result  was  that  many  did  not  get  much  sleep, 
as  the  water  would  accumulate  on  the  ground,  compelling  them 
to  "  evacuate  their  position." 

The  night  was  succeeded  by  a  bright,  clear  morning,  and, 
fortunately  for  the  troops,  orders  were  issued  to  cook  rations 
for  three  days,  which  was  equivalent  to  an  order  to  remain  for 
the  greater  part  of  the  day.  This  afforded  the  men  an  oppor 
tunity  to  dry  their  clothes,  which  was,  as  may  be  readily  sup 
posed,  well  improved. 

At  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  column  was  again  put  in 
motion.  We  will  not  stop  to  speak  of  passing  incidents  along 
the  road.  It  was  1  o'clock  in  the  morning  before  we  halted  for 
rest  and  sleep.  The  men  were  quite  tired,  and  as  soon  as  dis 
missed,  laid  down  to  sleep. 

Early  in  the  morning  the  march  was  resumed.  At  noon  we 
halted  for  dinner,  and  laid  in  the  woods  until  5  o'clock.  It  was 
late  in  the  evening  when  we  halted  to  bivouac  for  the  night. 
The  heat  exhausted  the  men  very  much,  but  more  than  all,  the 
scarcity  of  good  water.  Much  of  the  time  the  men  were  com 
pelled  to  drink  out  of  ponds,  the  water  of  which  our  Pennsyl 
vania  farmers  would  deem  unfit  for  their  horses. 

Friday  morning  more  than  usual  stir  was  visible  among  the 
troops,  for  this  day  they  expected  to  engage  the  enemy,  as  he 
was  reported  in  our  immediate  front.  The  following  order, 
too,  seemed  to  confirm  the  expectations  of  the  troops  : 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEKS.  349 

HEAD-QUARTERS,  SD  BRIGADE,  2o  Div., 

July  lOtft,  1863. 
CIRCULAR : 

Commandants  of  regiments  will  hold  their  commands  in 
readiness  to  move  upon  the  enemy  at  a  moment's  notice. 

Knapsacks  and  shelter  tents  will  be  piled  on  a  heap,  and  left 
in  camp  under  guard  of  invalids. 
By  command  of 

J.  F.  HARTRANFT, 

Col.  Cornel' g  3d  Brigade. 
(Signed) 
G.  H.  McKiBBiN,  A.  A.  General. 

The  distance  from  here  to  the  city  of  Jackson  was  about  six 
miles.  It  was  not  long  after  the  above  order  was  received,  that 
the  command,  "  fall  in, "  rang  along  the  road.  After  the  forma 
tion  of  the  brigade,  each  regimental  commander  was  required 
to  make  out  a  report  of  the  number  of  enlisted  men  and  officers 
present.  The  total  of  our  regiment  summed  up  as  follows  : 
twenty  officers  and  two  hundred  and  seventy  enlisted  men. 
The  whole  number  of  enlisted  men  in  the  brigade  did  not  ex 
ceed  one  thousand  and  twenty. 

We  moved  very  slowly  over  the  road  and  fields,  as  our  skir 
mishers  were  pushing  the  enemy  back.  There  were  frequent 
haltings,  and  it  was  not  till  near  sundown  that  we  drew  in  sight 
of  the  Asylum,  a  short  distance  this  side  of  Jackson.  There 
were  all  sorts  of  rumors  during  the  day  of  the  enemy  evacuat 
ing  the  city,  and  our  forces  being  in  it,  but  which  proved,  like 
most  camp  stories,  without  truth. 

While  watching  our  skirmishers  advancing  over  the  fields 
and  through  the  woods,  we  received  orders  to  bivouac  for  the 
night ;  but  just  as  the  men  were  building  their  fires  to  cook,  we 
were  again  ordered  forward.  We  marched  some  two  miles, 
formed  in  line  of  battle,  sent  pickets  out,  and  enjoyed  a  very 
good  night's  sleep.  During  the  night  large  fires  were  seen  in 
the  direction  of  the  city.  It  was  supposed  by  many  that  the 
rebels  were  destroying  their  commissary  stores  preparatory  to 
evacuating  the  city.  Such,  however,  could  not  have  been  the 
fact ;  for  the  length  of  time  they  occupied  the  city  thereafter 
contradicted  it,  and  renders  it  impossible. 

Early  on  Saturday  morning,  the  brigade  advanced  toward 
the  city.  Our  progress  was  necessarily  slow.  The  Asylum  was 


350     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

•* 

reached  at  about  eight  o'clock  ;  filing  round  it,  we  moved  down 
to  the  left.  As  we  passed  through  the  field  several  shells  came 
whizzing  over  us,  but  did  no  damage.  The  little  minies,  too, 
came  singing  over  us,  but  they  too,  did  us  no  harm. 

The  skirmishers  having  just  moved  over  the  ground,  and  not 
knowing  the  exact  position  of  them,  the  column  was  halted,  and 
the  desired  information  obtained  ;  after  which  our  regiment  ad 
vanced  to  the  support  of  the  2d  Mich.,  which  was  then  skir 
mishing  with  the  enemy.  We  formed  in  line  of  battle,  our 
right  resting  near  the  right  of  the  skirmishers.  As  then  the 
whole  line  needed  support,  the  regiment  was  so  divided  as  to 
be  able  to  give  proper  support  on  the  right,  left,  and  centre. 

We  were  visited  during  the  day  by  quite  a  heavy  shower  of 
rain.  It  had,  at  least,  the  good  effect  of  cooling  the  atmos 
phere,  and  rendering  it  more  pleasant  for  those  skirmishing. 
Our  skirmishers  and  those  of  the  enemy  kept  up  a  very  livel} 
fire  all  day  ;  and  even  in  the  midst  of  the  heavy  rain,  it  did  no; 
cease. 

On  Sunday  there  was  very  heavy  firing  along  the  whole  line. 
It  seemed  as  if  a  general  engagement  had  taken  place  on  oui 
right.  Such,  however,  was  not  the  case.  To-day  we  received 
the  cheering  news  of  the  defeat  of  Lee  and  the  surrender  oi 
Port  Hudson.  How  the  gladsome  news  caused  each  counte 
nance  to  lighten  up  with  joy  !  With  Vicksburg  in  our  pos 
session,  and  now  Port  Hudson,  too,  and  last,  not  least,  the  dis 
astrous  rout  of  Lee,  there  was  everything  to  excite  the  liveliest 
emotion  of  joy  and  gratitude,  and  to  inspire  each  heart  with 
the  double  assurance  that  the  end  was  near. 

In  the  evening  and  all  the  night  long,  the  regiment  was  em 
ployed  in  digging  rifle-pits.  It  was  pretty  hard  work,  the  more 
so  as  there  was  a  scarcity  of  picks.  They  went,  however,  at  it 
with  a  will,  and  the  opening  of  the  following  day  disclosed  to  the 
enemy  a  pretty  strong  line  of  pits. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  13th  the  enemy  made  a  demonstra 
tion  against  us,  more,  we  suppose,  for  the  purpose  of  feeling 
our  line  to  discover  the  weak  points  than  to  force  on  an  en 
gagement.  However,  whatever  may  have  been  their  design, 
they  were  driven  back  with  less  men  than  they  appeared.  They 
did  not  repeat  the  demonstration. 

On  Tuesday  we  were  relieved,  and  marched  about  a  mile  to 
the  rear.  The  men  were  very  glad  of  the  opportunity  to  enjoy 
a  respite  from  their  severe  duty  of  constant  watchfulness,  and 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  351 

the  suspense  in  which  they  were  constantly  kept  by  the  position 
of  the  two  armies.  During  the  afternoon  of  this  day,  hostilities 
were  suspended  for  several  hours  in  order  to  bury  the  dead. 

On  Wednesday  morning  one  hundred  men  were  detailed  from 
our  regiment  to  go  on  a  secret  expedition.  They  were  divided 
into  two  companies,  one  being  under  the  command  of  Capt.  L. 
S.  Hart,  and  the  other  under  Capt.  Linn.  There  were,  besides 
these,  one  hundred  men  detailed  from  the  remaining  regiments 
of  our  brigade,  making  a  total  force  of  two  hundred  men,  un 
der  command  of  Maj.  Wright  of  the  51st  N.  Y.  Their  mission 
was  fully  and  satisfactorily  accomplished,  and  all  returned  in 
safety  to  the  camp.  This  expedition,  we  doubt  not,  hastened 
the  subsequent  abandonment  of  Jackson  by  the  enemy. 

We  changed  our  camp  to-day,  moving  further  to  the  left. 
In  the  evening  we  received  orders  to  be  ready  to  move  at  an 
early  hour  to  the  front. 

It  was  half  past  2  o'clock  on  Thursday  morning  when  we 
again  moved  to  the  front.  As  heretofore  the  skirmishers  kept 
up  a  continual  fire  through  the  day.  In  the  afternoon  our  skir 
mishers  advanced  to  feel  the  rebel  lines,  but  they  found  them  in 
force,  and  again  fell  back  to  the  pits.  It  was  in  this  demonstra 
tion  that  Libol  Breinholtz,  of  the  50th  Penn.,  was  very  severely 
wounded. 

During  the  night  the  moving  of  wagons  and  artillery  could 
be  very  plainly  heard,  but  being  on  the  extreme  left  it  was  not 
certain  whether  the  enemy  were  evacuating  the  place,  or  mov 
ing  to  our  left  with  the  intention  of  breaking  it. 

At  3  o'clock  in  the  morning  we  relieved  the  skirmishers  in 
our  front.  About  daylight  the  order  came  to  advance  skir 
mishers.  Soon  the  whole  line  of  skirmishers  advanced  across 
the  country.  The  enemy's  rifle-pits  were  soon  reached,  but 
the  bird  had  flown,  and  left  behind  him  two  large  seige  guns. 

The  Second  Brigade  was  the  first  to  enter  the  city  and 
plant  the  colors  upon  the  dome  of  the  Capitol.  It  was  matter 
for  much  congratulation  that  our  corps  was  the  first  to  enter 
the  city.  The  Western  troops,  on  the  other  hand,  felt  much 
mortified,  and  said  that  we  were  too  fast,  that  we  had  advanced 
without  orders,  and  like  pleas  for  their  tardiness.  Our  corps, 
at  least  the  2d  Brigade,  was  an  hour  in  the  city  before  any  of 
the  Western  troops  arrived.  Some  of  the  men  took  especial  de 
light  in  teasing  them  for  what  they  did  to  us  when  WTC  first 
joined  them.  As  they  moved  towards  the  State-house,  regi- 


352     HISTORY   OF    THE    FJFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

ment  after  regiment,  some  would  sing  out  every  once  and 
awhile,  "  Boys,  you  are  too  late,  the  whiskey  is  all  gone,  the 
9th  Army  Corps  got  all  of  it  over  an  hour  ago."  This  grated 
harshly  on  their  ears,  not  the  matter  of  whiskey,  but  the  fact  of 
the  9th  Army  Corps  getting  first  into  Jackson.  Some  of  them 
could  not,  however,  with  these  facts  before  them,  resist  the 
temptation  to  tease  our  men  with  their  want  of  success  in  the 
East  and  their  constant  retreats,  &c.  Whenever  they  did,  they 
received  the  following  sharp  repartee — "  Never  mind,  boys,  we 
walked  into  Jackson  while  you  were  lying  asleep  in  the  bushes 
and  firing  at  imaginary  rebels." 

The  city  of  Jackson  is  the  capital  of  Mississippi.  Some  parts 
of  it  are  quite  attractive.  There  are  a  few  very  fine  private 
residences.  It  is,  or  rather  was,  a  much  prettier  place  than 
Vicksburg.  The  rebels  destroyed  several  blocks  of  buildings 
the  night  they  retreated.  During  the  day  the  Western  troops 
fired  quite  a  number  of  buildings,  so  that  by  night  a  goodly 
portion  of  the  city  was  in  ashes. 

In  the  evening  we  returned  to  our  old  camp.  Thus  ended 
the  eight  days'  seige  of  Jackson.  We  have  special  reason  to  be 
thankful  for  our  deliverance  from  death  and  serious  injury. 
Of  the  two  hundred  and  seventy  men  who,  with  the  exception 
of  two  days,  wrere  constantly  in  the  front,  only  one  man,  Sergt. 
Benj.  White,  of  Co.  F,  was  seriously  injured,  though  some  ten 
or  fifteen  more  were  grazed  or  struck  by  spent  balls. 

On  Monday  morning  we  commenced  moving  back  to  Vicks 
burg.  On  Thursday  we  reached  our  old  camp,  after  the  most 
severe  marching  our  regiment  ever  performed.  We  have  not 
the  time  now— much  as  we  would  desire — to  refer  to  the  inci 
dents  of  this  march.  We  may  take  occasion  to  do  so  at  an 
other  period.  Begging  pardon  for  the  abrupt  manner  in  which 
we  bring  this  letter  to  a  close,  we  remain, 

Yours,  &c.,  E.  S. 

After  the  storm  somewhat  abated,  the  heaviest 
peals  of  thunder  over,  and  the  lightning's  flash  be 
gan  to  move  off  in  the  distance,  the  regiment  with 
the  whole  column  moved  off  again,  but  the  abund 
ant  supply  of  water  had  made  further  marching  im 
possible,  for  what  had  only  a  short  time  before  been 
stifling  dust  was  now  a  bed  of  rnire,  and  the  column 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      353 

hulled  for  the  night  after  floundering  through  the 
mud  about  an  eighth  of  a  mile.  When  the  column 
made  its  involuntary  halt,  the  men,  in  conversation 
among  themselves,  protested  against  proceeding  any 
further  that  night — they  were  dripping  with  water, 
their  boots  and  shoes  were  filled  with  the  liquid 
that  had  drenched  them  to  the  skin  and  ran  down 
their  legs  into  their  foot  gear,  and  swearing  that  if 
Gen.  Parke  wished  to  go  on  he  could  do  so;  but  they 
were  going  to  leave  the  ranks  and  look  out  for  them 
selves.  Consequently  when  the  column  started  off 
again  three-fifths  of  the  men  made  good  their  word 
by  filing  to  either  side  of  the  road  to  quarter  for  the 
night,  so  as  the  column  moved  the  men  kept  falling 
out  at  every  step  and  not  unfrequently  did  the  offi 
cers  follow.  Had  Gen.  Parke  persisted  in  continu 
ing  the  march  that  night  it  might  be  safe  to  say  he 
could  not  have  mustered  one  hundred  men  out  of 
his  whole  command  at  the  end  of  a  mile.  When 
daylight  appeared  next  day  the  men  found  them 
selves  scattered  at  great  distances  from  their  colors, 
but  all  immediately  tore  down  their  rudely  construc 
ted  quarters  and  began  to  seek  out  their  respective 
regiments,  which  they  found  had  marched  the  night 
before  only  a  couple  of  hundred  yards  after  they  had 
fallen  out.  They  needed  not  to  hurry  themselves, 
for  after  reaching  their  colors  they  found  orders  had 
been  issued  to  cook  three  days'  rations,  which  would 
take  several  hours  to  accomplish. 

At  this  place  a  well  newly  dug  had  been  discov 
ered.  It  had  evidently  been-  dug  by  Johnston's 
army,  as  the  dirt  around  it  indicated  that  it  had  re 
cently  been  turned  up.  This  well  contained  about 
twelve  feet  of  water.  Its  discovery  was  through  the 

16* 


354:     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

agency  of  an  old  negro  man  residing  in  the  vicinity. 
When  first  found  the  well  had  been  dug  down  at  the 
sides  about  four  feet,  rudely  covered  over  with 
slabs,  boards  and  brush,  this  basin  then  filled  up 
with  earth  even  to  the  surface  of  the  ground,  and 
then  vehicles  drawn  over  it  to  hide  every  vestige  of 
such  a  prize,  by  making  ruts,  to  give  it  the  appear 
ance  of  solid  ground.  After  being  opened,  so  great 
was  the  rush  for  water  that'  the  supply  was  exhausted 
in  a  very  short  time.  Strings  were  tied  to  tin  cups, 
canteens,  buckets,  mess-pans  and  camp  kettles,  and 
lowered^to  the  water.  A  dozen  would  be  descend 
ing  while  another  dozen  were  being  hauled  up,  only 
to  be  spilled  by  the  men — eager  to  grasp  it  and  run. 
In  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  orders  to  resume 
the  march  were  issued,  and  the  column  began  to 
wind  around  a  sharp  curve  to  the  left  in  the  road  at 
4  P.  M.  After  marching  a  few  miles  orders  were  is 
sued  to  the  men  to  capture  all  the  mules  or  horses 
they  could  find  along  the  line  of  march,  and  men 
were  detailed  to  carry  out  the  order.  They  were 
also  to  fasten  canteens  on  the  animals,  to  be  filled 
with  water  for  the  use  of  the  men,  as  water  was  only 
to  be  obtained  by  going  a  great  distance  for  it.  The 
mules  were  captured,  but  very  little  water  was  con 
veyed  to  the  troops  by  that  means,  as  their  riders 
preferred  using  their  speed  for  their  own  private 
wants,  foraging  for  watermelons,  peaches,  figs,  and 
other  fruits  of  that  region,  while  the  troops  were 
suffering  with  thirst.  Some  few — yes,  very  few — did 
their  duty  honorably.  A  member  of  Co.  D,  Wm. 
Jenkins,  deserves  especial  mention ;  he  had  cap 
tured  a  jackass  and  not  only  supplied  his  own  com 
pany  with  water  when  he  could  find  it,  but  supplied 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  355 

a  number  of  men  of  other  companies.  About  1.80 
A.  M.  (the  9th)  the  regiment  halted  for  the  remainder 
of  the  night.  The  men  were  too  much  fatigued  to 
make  a  cup  of  coffee,  and  threw  themselves  down  on 
the  ground  to  get  a  little  rest  and  sleep.  At  6 
o'clock  A.  M.  of  the  9th  they  fell  in  again  and 
marched  until  noon,  with  only  three  rests  in  the  six 
hours.  The  heat  was  excessive,  and  the  men  began 
to  lag  behind  from  exhaustion,  although  striving  to 
their  utmost  to  keep  up  with  their  colors.  March 
ing  across  a  large  field,  a  beautiful  grove  appeared 
in  view,  and  when  reached,  the  brigade  halted  and 
stayed  there  until  5  P.  M.  The  change  from  tightly 
buckled  accoutrements  and  the  rays  of  a  dazzling, 
scorching  sun,  to  the  reanimating  shade,  cool  air  and 
loosened  clothing,  was  too  enchanting  to  be  fully  ap 
preciated  by  any  one  who  never  experienced  pre 
cisely  the  same  thing.  Water,  too,  was  here  !  pure, 
limpid  water,  that  was  so  often  sought  for  but  so 
seldom  found.  At  5  P.  M.,  with  many  regrets  for 
the  good  water  that  had  to  be  left  behind,  the  col 
umn  started  again.  Being  now  close  on  Johnston's 
heels,  the  march  became  more  tedious,  the  skirmish 
ing  more  frequent,  and  the  firing  more  rapid — teams 
and  artillery  blocking  up  the  road.  The  regiment 
came  to  a  halt  about  8  o'clock  that  night,  in  a  woods 
close  to  the  roadside,  only  a  short  distance  from 
Jackson.  Here  the  men  quartered  for  the  night, 
tolerably  comfortable,  if  we  except  the  scarcity  of 
water.  At  daylight  next  morning  (10th)  heavy 
firing  began  all  along  the  front,  and  preparations 
were  made  for  leaving  to  meet  the  enemy  at  once 
and  attack  him  before  he  could  get  behind  his  en 
trenchments.  Orders  were  issued  for  everything 


356     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

burdensome  to  be  left  behind  under  guard  of  the 
sick  and  worn-out. 

Col.  J.  F.  Hartranft  made  his  headquarters  in  an 
ambulance,  he  being  unable,  from  sickness,  to  sit 
up,  but  reclining  on  the  cushions  of  the  seats,  he 
dispatched  orders  and  manoeuvred  his  command  as 
skilfully  as  if  able  to  sit  on  his  horse  and  attend  to 
the  details  in  person.  He  possessed  for  an  assis 
tant  adjutant  general,  Capt.  G.  H.  McKibbin — a  host 
within  himself — and  who  was  without  a  doubt  one  of 
the  bravest  among  the  brave,  and  a  fit  companion 
in  courage  and  skill  for  the  intrepid  Hartranft. 

At  6.20  A.  M.  of  the  10th  the  regiment  formed  on 
the  color  line,  and  the  true  strength  of  the  regiment 
taken  by  the  adjutant  and  sergeant  major,  who  re 
ported  fit  for  field  duty,  20  officers  and  251  enlisted 
men,  besides  19  enlisted  men  unfit  to  participate  in 
a  battle,  summing  up  20  officers  and  270  enlisted 
men  as  the  total  strength  of  the  51st  present  that 
day. 

After  the  report  was  made  the  column  again  ad 
vanced  to  the  support  of  the  skirmishers,  who  now 
were  engaging  the  enemy  near  his  earthworks  in 
front  of  Jackson.  The  marching  was  toilsome  and 
slow,  for  the  enemy  stubbornly  contested  every  inch 
of  ground,  and  would  only  give  way  when  no  longer 
able  to  hold  his  position.  Fifty  to  one  hundred 
yards  would  be  as  far  as  the  column  could  move  at 
a  time,  making  it  very  painful  to  stand  in  the  ranks 
until  ordered  to  proceed.  Some  halts  would  be  for 
only  a  few  seconds,  others  for  an  hour,  and  when  the 
Asylum  (the  first  building  in  view  on  the  outskirts 
of  the  city)  was  first  seen,  it  was  nearly  sundown. 

The  regiment  drew  up  in  line  of  battle  in  a  field 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      357 

about  a  mile  west  of  the  Asylum,  stacked  arms  and 
demolished  the  fencing  preparatory  to  making  a  cup 
of  coffee,  some  few  fires  were  started,  when  orders 
were  given  to  "  fall  in."  It  was  now  nearly  dark. 
The  regiment  moved  by  the  road  to  the  rear  of  the 
Insane  Asylum,  into  a  field  on  the  side  of  the  road 
opposite  to  the  mansion  of  the  rebel  colonel,  Oscar 
J.  Stuart,  and  there  drew  up  in  line  of  battle  again, 
and  sent  out  a  strong  picket  line  about  one  hundred 
yards  in  its  front.  The  regiment  then  lay  in  line  on 
their  arms  all  night. 

On  the  morning  of  the  llth  orders  were  issued 
for  the  2d  Brigade,  2d  Division,  to  advance  on  the 
city.  Col.  Hartranft  not  being  able  to  get  his  ambu 
lance  on  the  field  of  battle,  sent  it  to  the  rear  out  of 
the  way  of  the  ponderous  shells  that  now  filled  the 
air.  He  mounted  his  horse,  although  scarcely  able 
to  sit  there,  and  led  his  brigade  into  action,  making 
his  charger  leap  a  frightful  chasm  that  very  few  men 
in  sound  health  would  dare  attempt.  After  get 
ting  his  men  posted  to  suit  him,  he  became  so  weak 
and  exhausted  that  he  had  to  withdraw  from  the 
field,  but  not  from  active  command.  The  battle 
field  was  his  glory,  and  if  he  could  not  remain  on  it 
he  was  determined  not  to  be  far  from  it. 

It  was  about  9  A.  M.  of  the  llth  when  the  regi 
ment  became  engaged  with  the  enemy.  Skirmishers 
were  thrown  out  and  the  column  followed  to  their 
support,  the  51st  P.  V.  supporting  the  2d  Michigan, 
who  now  were  engaging  the  foe.  The  engagement 
now  became  general,  and  wounded  men  were  being 
borne  to  the  rear  in  large  numbers. 

One  man  of  Co.  A,  Capt.  Jos.  K.  Bolton,  by  name 
of  Robert  Roberts,  deserves  special  mention  for  his 


358     HISTOEY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIKST   KEGIMENT 

daring  in  this  day's  fight.  While  others  were  lying 
as  close  to  the  ground  on  the  brow  of  the  hill  as 
they  could  get,  "Bob"  stood  on  his  feet  loading  and 
firing  from  the  going  in  of  the  regiment  until  night, 
exposing  himself  as  a  target  the  whole  day  to  the 
entire  fire  of  the  enemy's  centre  without  receiving 
a  scratch.  His  mode  to  escape  being  hit  was  some 
what  original.  As  soon  as  he  fired,  he  would  drop 
the  butt  of  his  gun  on  the  ground,  grasp  it  by  the 
muzzle,  and  dragging  it  after  him,  loading  and  cap 
ping  it  while  traversing  a  circle  of  about  twenty-five 
yards  in  diameter,  continually  keeping  himself  in 
motion,  standing  in  no  place  for  a  single  instant  only 
while  firing.  His  captain  remonstrated  with  him 
for  foolishly  exposing  himself,  when  he  could  do  his 
share  by  lying  down  and  firing  with  his  regiment. 
Capt.  Bolton,  though,  was  nearly  as  bad  as  "Bob," 
for  every  few  minutes  he  exposed  himself  to  the 
same  dangers,  to  satisfy  his  curiosity,  by  trying  to 
see  what  effect  the  firing  of  Sherman's  men  was 
having  on  the  enemy. 

When  darkness  set  in,  entrenching  tools  were 
issued  to  the  troops,  for  the  purpose  of  throwing  up 
breastworks  for  the  protection  of  the  pickets.  The 
51st  worked  all  night  at  its  line  of  pits,  and  ere 
daylight  came  the  line  was  complete  from  right  to 
left,  and  it  must  have  somewhat  surprised  the  enemy 
to  see  such  a  formidable  work  thrown  up  in  such 
short  time.  Here  the  regiment  lay  four  days  and 
nights  in  battle.  On  the  third  day  of  the  attack, 
the  enemy  arose  to  their  feet  and  "  fixed  bayonets" 
for  a  charge  upon  our  works.  Col.  Schall  immedi 
ately  warned  his  command  that  the  charge  must  be 
repelled,  let  the  sacrifice  cost  -what  it  may.  But  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      359 

regiment  needed  no  such  warning,  for  at  the  instant 
the  enemy  sprang  to  his  feet,  so  did  the  51st,  with 
their  bayonets  fixed  as  soon  as  the  rebels'  were.  A 
certain  regiment  that  was  supporting  the  51st  be 
came  so  alarmed  at  the  sudden  appearance  of  the 
enemy,  and  the  formidable  aspect  of  the  51st  in  reso 
lutely  determing  to  brave  the  coming  storm,  that  it 
ended  in  a  panic,  and  they  wildly  rushed  to  the 
rear,  leaving  the  51st  to  repel  the  threatened  assault 
as  best  it  might.  However,  the  charge  was  not  made  ; 
and  they  came  back  to  their  old  position  in  about 
an  hour.  The  51st  kept  in  line  until  dark,  when 
they  again  took  their  old  posts  as  pickets.  The 
enemy  did  make  a  charge  on  the  right  of  centre, 
but  were  repulsed. 

Next  day,  the  2d  Division,  9th  Army  Corps,  was 
relieved  by  the  1st  Division,  9th  Army  Corps,  and 
the  51st  fell  back  to  a  dense  pine  woods  near  the 
Insane  Asylum,  and  went  into  camp,  where  all  were 
glad  to  get  a  little  rest  and  sleep,  after  watching  in 
the  pits  four  days  and  nights  without  one  moment's 
relief.  Even  the  comfort  of  a  good  smoke,  or  a 
chew  of  tobacco,  was  denied  them,  as  neither 
smoking  nor  chewing  tobacco  could  be  obtained 
through  friendship  or  money.  Weeds,  of  nearly 
all  species,  were  obtained  to  smoke  as  a  substitute 
for  tobacco — many  smoking  ground  coffee,  tea,  pa 
per,  in  fact  anything  that  hands  could  procure  that 
would  burn. 

Soon  after  getting  into  camp,  their  dreams  of  rest 
and  sleep  were  dispelled  by  an  order  calling  for  a 
detail  of  one  hundred  men,  to  start  immediately  for 
the  Pearl  river,  on  a  reconnoitering  party  that  was 
composed  of  the  2d  brigade  alone.  As  might  have 


360     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

been  expected,  Gren.  Parke  received  a  genuine 
"cursing"  from  all  hands.  Although  unheard  by 
him,  he  certainly  must  have  felt  his  ears  burn,  for  he 
was  consigned  to  all  kinds  of  torture  by  the  already 
wornout  soldiers. 

After  the  detail  started  on  its  secret  expedition, 
the  regiment  changed  camp,  and  expected  to  remain 
in  it  at  least  two  days ;  but,  in  the  evening,  the  regi 
ment  was  again  ordered  to  the  front ;  at  2  o'clock 
of  the  next  morning  the  regiment  was  groping  its 
way,  in  silence  and  in  darkness,  through  the  woods, 
ravines  and  gullies,  to  its  place  in  front.  Arriving 
there,  it  relieved  the  2d  Michigan  Sharpshooters. 

In  the  afternoon,  our  troops  advanced  their  skir 
mishers  to  feel  the  enemy's  line  ;  but  they  had  no 
need  to  go  far,  for  the  enemy  showed  too  plainly, 
that  they  were  not  only  there,  but  in  heavy  force. 
The  battle  lasted  about  an  hour,  and  the  line  fell 
back  to  its  former  position,  keeping  up  a  sharp 
picket  firing  for  the  remainder  of  the  day  and  night. 
The  batteries  of  both  sides  kept  up  a  lively  artillery 
duel  throughout  the  night,  and  a  circumstance  that 
happened  during  the  "duel,"  shows  the  correct 
range  that  both  sides  had  of  each  other  in  the 
pitchy  darkness.  A  little  to  the  right  of  centre, 
two  shells  met  in  their  aerial  flight.  The  explosion 
of  our  shell  took  place  on  the  instant  of  concussion, 
directly  over  our  picket  line.  It  caused  a  very 
peculiar  sound,  something  like  striking  two  ham 
mers  together.  Then  came  the  explosion.  The 
rebel  shell  must  have  been  of  by  far  the  heavier 
metal,  as  its  force  was  only  partially  checked,  for  it 
exploded  only  a  little  short  of  its  intended  object. 

Next  morning,  the  51st  was  relieved  of  the  pits, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      361 

and  moved  about  fifty  yards  to  the  rear  to  support 
the  pickets ;  which  position  it  occupied  until  mid 
night  of  the  16th  of  July,  when  it  was  ordered  to 
take  up  a  position  on  the  extreme  left  of  the  whole 
line,  w.'ich  was  being  extended  at  least  one  mile 
further  in  that  direction  and  towards  Pearl  river. 
This  movement  will  never  be  forgotten  by  any  who 
participated  in  it.  The  nature  of  the  ground  was 
unknown  to  any  one  in  the  brigade — the  darkness 
of  the  night  was  beyond  description,  aided  by  the 
dark  foliage  of  the  almost  impenetrable  forest,  made 
the  progress  very  tedious,  painful,  and  slow.  Te 
dious,  on  account  of  the  unevenness  of  the  ground, 
which  was  full  of  deep,  narrow  ravines,  whose  sides 
were  as  perpendicular  as  walls  ;  painful,  from  get 
ting  entangled  and  scratched  in  the  green  chapparal 
briars — falling  in  holes,  and  scrambling;  to  ascend 

o  /  o 

the  high  banks — running  of  eyes  against  branches 
of  dead  underbrush,  and  striking  our  legs  against 
stumps  and  fallen  tree-trunks  ;  slow,  through  disen 
gaging  clothing,  haversacks,  accoutrements  and  guns, 
from  the  limbs  of  felled  tree -tops,  briars,  the  dense 
growth  of  underbrush — and  in  losing  their  way 
in  the  dark,  and  getting  separated  from  each  other — 
this  short  move  occupied  until  near  daylight.  Soon 
after  getting  into  position,  Capt.  Bisbing,  of  Co.  I, 
with  Corp.  William  Dignan,  of  Co.  D,  determined 
on  finding  the  true  position  of  the  enemy;  and  these 
two  sallied  forth  and  went  on  until  they  reached 
the  rebel  pits,  which  were  empty  !  This  piece  of 
good  news  was  immediately  communicated  to  Col. 
Schall,  who  ordered  the  regiment  to  "fall  in,"  as 
also  did  the  2d  brigade,  and  at  once  started  towards 
Jackson.  The  51st  being  on  the  advance,  it  had 


362      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

proceeded  about  a  mile  and  a  half  when  the  other 
part  of  the  line  perceived  the  " stars  and  stripes" 
moving  towards  the  city  ;  but,  as  soon  as  perceived, 
the  Western  troops  directly  started  for  the  same 
point,  and  a  race  ensued  for  the  entry  first  into  the 
city.  Although  the  51st  had  considerably  farther  to 
march  than  any  other  part  of  the  line,  yet  it  was  the 
first  to  attain  the  object,  and  planted  its  colors  in 
front  of  the  Capitol  at  6.28,  A.  M.,  of  July  17th,  1863. 
This  feat  was  received  by  the  Western  troops  with 
a  very  bad  grace.  It  silenced  their  abuse  against 
the  9th  Army  Corps,  for  the  Western  troops  were  con 
tinually  insulting  the  latter  by  asking  them  lt  if  they 
came  out  there  to  teach  them  how  to  retreat,  and 
show  them  how  that  Yankee  Army  of  the  Potomac 
could  run  ?"  But,  after  the  fall  of  Jackson,  whenever 
the  Eastern  troops  were  taunted,  they  retaliated  by 
asking  "  who  had  to  come  away  out  here  to  help  you 
take  a  one-horse  town  like  Vicksburg?  who  took 
Jackson  for  you  ?"  Such  replies  had  the  desired 
effect,  and  towards  the  close  of  the  association  of 
the  two  armies,  quite  a  strong  friendly  feeling  began 
to  manifest  itself  between  them.  The  loss  of  the 
51st  P.  V.  during  the  attack  on  Johnston,  was  as 
follows.* 

A  number  of  deaths  occurred  from  sickness  that 
will  hereafter  be  accounted  for. 

*  Co.  F. — Sergeant  Benjamin  F.  White  and  Harry  Jacobs, 
wounded. 

Co.  I. — Capt.  George  W.  Bisbing,  Sergt.  Thomas  H.  Par 
ker,  and  Corp.  William  Pope,  wounded.  Several  more  were 
wounded,  the  official  report  says  10. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      363 


CHAPTEK    V. 

Sacking  of  Jackson — Frolicsome  march  to  the  fort — Grotesque 
costumes  and  rich  scenes — Severe  marching — A  land  of 
plenty — Rest — Foraging  in  the  cornfields — Arrival  at  the 
Big  Black — Heavy  storm — Mud-marching— Milldale  again — 
Complimentary  order  from  Gen.  Grant — Correspondence — 
Resignation  of  Chaplain  Mallory. 

AFTER  the  regiment  planted  its  colors  in  the  front 
of  the  Capitol,  it  stacked  arms  in  the  street  in  front 
of  the  Capitol  grounds.  A  detail  was  made  to  guard 
the  stacks  and  another  to  secure  the  prisoners  who 
were  unable  to  get  far  from  the  city.  The  51st  se 
cured  about  fifty  of  the  Southern  chivalry,  a  number 
of  whom  acknowledged  that  they  had  just  been  pa 
roled  at  Vicksburg,  and  had  been  in  Jackson  with 
Johnston's  army  several  days. 

The  remainder  of  the  regiment  who  were  not  on 
special  duty  broke  ranks  and  ransacked  the  town 
for  tobacco,  whiskey,  and  such  valuables  as  had 
been  left  behind  by  the  fleeing  citizens  on  the  re 
treat  of  Johnston.  Tobacco  warehouses  had  been 
broken  open,  and  the  invaders  freely  supplied  them 
selves  with  the  weed  of  the  very  best  brands ;  none 
other  suited  them  now.  Whiskey  was  the  next  thing 
to  be  sought  out,  and  a  copious  supply  was  found 
and  used,  but  not  a  drunken  man  was  to  be  seen  in 
the  whole  9th  Corps.  After  supplying  themselves 
to  repletion  with  tobacco  and  whiskey,  then  private 
property  had  to  suffer.  Grocery,  dry  goods,  hat, 
shoe,  millinery  and  drug  stores  were  broken  open 
and  "  cleaned  out  "  of  every  vestige  of  their  con- 


364     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REG-IMENT 

tents  ;  private  dwellings  entered  and  plundered  of 
money,  jewelry,  and  all  else  of  any  value  was  car 
ried  off;  crockery,  chinaware,  pianos,  furniture,  &c., 
were  smashed  to  atoms;  hogsheads  of  sugar  rolled 
into  the  street  and  the  heads  knocked  in  and  con 
tents  spilled. 

Some  rabid  Secessionists  on  leaving  the  city  had 
set  it  on  fire  in  several  places,  and  the  Union  arrny 
on  entering  had  tried  their  utmost  to  stay  the  de 
vouring  element,  bat  with  no  success,  as  it  had  got 
too  far  under  way,  and  soon  some  very  splendid 
buildings  were  reduced  to  ashes. 

About  noon  the  regiment  was  ordered  to  take  pos 
session  of  a  large  fort  that  extended  across  the  main 
street  at  its  entrance  to  the  city.  As  the  regiment 
was  marching  out  it  made  quite  a  ludicrous  appear 
ance,  for  the  men  were  dressed  in  the  most  laugh 
able  and  grotesque  habiliments  that  could  be  found. 
Some  all  clad  in  female  attire,  some  with  hats  having 
crowns  a  foot  high  and  run  up  to  a  point,  some  with 
sacques  on,  some  with  mantillas,  shawls,  sun-bon 
nets,  frock  skirts,  with  crinoline  over  all  instead  of 
underneath  ;  in  fact  everything  was  put  on  that  a 
head,  hand,  arm,  body,  a  foot  or  feet  could  get  into, 
and  while  marching  out  to  the  fort  dressed  in  this 
fantastical  style  they  carried  bonnet  and  bandboxes 
in  their  hands,  as  if  they  were  about  to  travel  to 
Europe,  or  going  into  the  country  to  spend  a  few 
days  or  weeks.  They  were  followed  by  the  colored 
females,  yelling  and  screaming  with  delight,  and 
begging  the  "Yankees"  to  ugib  us  dat  bonnit," 
and  "Massa,  do  please  gib  me  dat  fruck;"  still  an 
other,  "  Oh,  de  Lor  bress  you,  dim  (give)  me  dem 
hoops,"  and  so  many  such  like  expressions  beset  the 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  365 

men,  that  by  the  time  they  arrived  at  the  fort  the 
colored  ladies  were  in  possession  of  nearly  every 
particle  of  clothing  of  female  wear  which  the  men 
had. 

Gen.  Sherman,  in  company  with  several  other 
generals,  passed  the  regiment  when  so  bewitchingly 
attired,  and  enjoyed  the  sight  as  much  as  any  one 
could,  if  the  shaking  of  his  sides  by  laughter  was 
any  indication  of  his  enjoyment.  Gen.  Ferrero  also 
met  the  regiment,  and  putting  a  severely  stern  look 
of  anger  on  his  countenance,  halted  his  horse  as  if 
he  intended  to  rebuke  them  for  their  unmilitary  ap 
pearance,  when  one  of  the  men,  who  wore  an  old- 
fashioned,  high-crowned  Dunstable  bonnet,  saluted 
him  with  so  much  sany  froid  as  to  make  him  burst 
out  in  a  peal  of  laughter  that  could  not  be  controlled, 
and  he  rode  off  amid  the  cheers  of  the  regiment. 

On  arriving  at  the  fort  a  detail  of  about  thirty 
men  was  made  to  guard  the  two  heavy  siege  guns  that 
had  been  left  behind  by  Johnston,  and  the  almost 
innumerable  cotton  bales  that  had  been  used  in  the 
construction  of  the  work ;  also,  to  guard  some  of  the 
more  costly  edifices  and  private  property  in  the  vi 
cinity  of  the  fort. 

Towards  evening  of  Friday,  July  17th,  1863,  the 
regiment  was  relieved  at  the  fort  by  a  regiment  of 
Sherman's  men.  We  marched  back  to  the  vicinity 
of  the  Insane  Asylum,  and  went  into  camp  in  a 
pleasant  woods.  The  next  day  (18th)  the  men  did 
no  other  duty  but  clean  up  their  arms,  accoutre 
ments,  and  wash  their  very  scanty  stock  of  clothing, 
for  while  on  the  march  from  "McCall's"  to  Jackson 
the  men  threw  away  nearly  all  their  clothing.  New 
blankets,  pants,  blouses,  shirts  and  tents  had  all  been 


366     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

left  on  the  roadside  as  being  too  cumbersome,  and  at 
the  time  the  regiment  encamped  at  this  place  scarcely 
any  man  was  the  owner  of  more  than  one  shirt,  and 
without  tent  or  blanket  to  protect  them  from  the 
rays  of  the  sun  or  to  cover  them  during  the  night. 

On  Sunday  (19th)  Col.  Schall  had  regimental  in 
spection,  and  if  it  was  witnessed  by  any  person  ig 
norant  of  the  part  the  51st  acted  in  the  taking  of 
Jackson,  they  would  certainly  have  doubted  that 
those  men  were  so  destitute  of  clothing,  or  so  shortly 
before  had  been  wallowing  in  the  mud  of  the  rifle- 
pits  ;  for  on  this  occasion  their  personal  appearance 
was  characteristic  of  the  highest  discipline,  and 
received  due  credit  from  their  beloved  commander. 

On  Monday,  July  20th,  the  regiment  broke  camp 
and  began  to  wend  its  way  back  towards  Milldale, 
distant  by  most  direct  route  forty-four  and  one-half 
miles,  but  by  the  circuitous  route  taken  by  the  corps 
it  was  full  sixty-five  miles.  It  left  camp  at  4  o'clock 
in  the  morning  and  marched  on  till  11  o'clock  that 
night,  when  it  bivouacked  in  a  large  field  close  to  a 
fine  mansion  that  stood  on  a  corner  of  a  cross-roads, 
about  twenty -eight  miles  from  Jackson.  There  was 
scarcely  thirty  guns  stacked  with  the  colors,  the  day 
had  been  very  hot  and  sultry,  water  scarce  and 
filthy,  and  rations  far  too  meagre  for  hard  march 
ing,  (being  only  one  and  a  half  days  rations  issued 
to  take  them  back  to  Milldale.)  The  heat  and  ex 
cessive  marching  forced  the  men  to  leave  the  ranks 
and  shelter  themselves  from  the  sun's  rays  among 
the  undergrowth  of  hedges  and  woods.  The  im 
mense  clouds  of  dust  that  arose  through  the  march 
ing  column,  filled  the  throats  and  nostrils  almost  to 
suffocation;  clothing,  hair,  faces,  whiskers,  arms  and 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.      367 

equipments  were  so  begrimed  with  dust  that  every 
thing  and  every  one  was  of  one  color  and  one  com 
plexion  ;  the  mouth  so  filled  with  dust  that  in  clos 
ing  the  teeth  they  grated  as  if  grinding  on  sand. 

After  stacking  arms  for  the  night  the  men  began 
to  wander  through  the  darkness  in  search  of  water 
to  make  their  coffee;  finally  they  found  some  less 
than  a  half  mile  from  their  quarters,  and  as  some 
wag  had  started  the  cheering  news  that  it  was  the 
Big  Black  river,  every  one  sought  it,  elated  with 
having  clear  running  water  to  drink  and  for  cook 
ing  ;  they  used  it  freely  and  all  filled  their  canteens 
in  the  dark  to  be  ready  to  leave  when  ordered,  but 
great  was  their  chagrin  the  next  morning  when  it 
became  light  enough  to  see  what  they  had  been 
using  so  freely  all  through  the  night.  When  some 
few  ran  to  look  at  the  river  !  a  glance  at  it  told  them 
they  had  been  awfully  "  sold,"  for  instead  of  a  river 
it  proved  to  be  one  of  the  most  filthy  and  disgust 
ing  stagnant  ponds  that  had  been  their  lot  to  see 
while  in  that  State. 

On  Tuesday  morning,  the  21st,  at  2J  o'clock,  the 
51st  had  to  prepare  to  leave,  it  being  broad  daylight 
that  soon.  The  men  not  knowing  they  were  to  leave 
so  early,  and  feeling  much  fatigued  from  the  previous 
day's  march,  they  were  naturally  slow  about  falling 
into  line,  each  one  supposing  that  he  would  have 
ample  time  to  make  a  cup  of  coffee  before  starting. 
Some  few  fires  were  kindled  when  the  hour  (3 
o'clock)  for  starting  arrived,  the  drums  beat  the  as 
sembly,  the  men  fell  in  unequipped  and  only  partly 
dressed,  wondering  what  such  a  fuss  was  all  for,  but 
the  word  "forward"  was  sounded  and  they  were 


368      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

astonished  at  the  idea  of  having  to   leave  without 
their  breakfast,  such  as  it  was. 

This  early  start  was  occasioned  by  the  51st  being 
posted  on  the  extreme  right  of  the  corps  which  had 
to  take  the  advance  of  the  column.  To  the  51st  this 
was  a  tl  Godsend,"  for  nothing  had  passed  over  the 
road  since  the  last  rain  had  fallen,  and  it  thereby 
missed  the  stifling  dust  that  could  be  seen  rising  like 
heavy  clouds  in  its  rear  after  the  whole  column  had 
got  into  motion ;  this  one  blessing  compensated  and 
satisfied  them  for  the  loss  of  their  breakfast.  The 
regiment  marched  until  8  o'clock,  when  it  halted  in 
a  woods  for  their  morning  meal,  half  an  hour  being 
allowed  for  that  purpose.  After  the  expiration  of 
the  time  it  again  started  and  marched  until  10  o'clock 
A.  M.,  when  it  halted  in  a  woods  for  the  middle  of 
the  day.  While  here  cattle  were  killed  and  issued 
to  the  different  regiments,  but  nothing  else  was  is 
sued,  and  the  men  being  informed  that  they  were 
not  to  move  until  3  p.  M.,  struck  out  in  small  squads 
to  forage  for  something  to  eat  besides  fresh  beef. 
Peaches  of  the  most  luscious  flavor  were  in  abund 
ance,  apples  not  so  plenty,  but  for  watermelons,  nut 
megs  and  cantaloupes  their  equal  was  never  seen  in 
the  Philadelphia  markets  for  either  size  or  luscious- 
ness  ;  consequently  haversacks,  blouse  sleeves  and 
handkerchiefs  were  well  filled  for  the  resumption  of 
the  night's  march  that  was  to  follow.  A  good  din 
ner  of  boiled  green-corn,  fresh  beef,  stewed  peaches 
and  apples,  a  little  cabbage,  &c.,  with  a  dessert  of 
melons,  was  highly  appreciated  by  the  officers  and 
men.  Shortly  after  3  P.  M.,  the  regiment  again 
started,  but  the  heat  was  equal  to  any  part  of  the 
day  and  made  it  almost  impossible  for  men  to  exist. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      369 

After  marching  five  or  six  miles  they  began  to  give 
out.  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  saw  that  each  man  had  tried 
to  outvie  his  companions  by  endurance,  and  as  there 
was  no  object  to  straggle  for,  the  men  sinking  from 
actual  exhaustion,  he  dismounted  from  his  "Bobby," 
and  placed  the  most  wearied  ones  on  the  horse,  and 
allowed  them  to  ride  until  they  became  a  little  rested, 
when  a  couple  more  "  invalids"  would  take  their 
places  in  the  saddle  and  on  the  horse's  back  behind 
the  saddle,  and  thus  they  were  helped  along  on  their 
weary  way  until  10  o'clock  at  night,  Col.  S.  lead 
ing  the  horse  most  of  the  time  for  them,  until  the 
regiment  halted  for  the  night  in  an  almost  limitless 
cornfield  within  a  few  miles  of  the  Big  Black  river. 

Early  the  next  morning  the  whole  column  was 
moved  into  a  large  woods  that  stood  like  an  island 
in  the  cornfield,  and  waited  there  until  4  p.  M.,  for  the 
purpose  of  giving  all  the  stragglers  an  opportunity 
of  catching  up  to  the  corps  before  it  crossed  the  Big 
Black.  Here  the  day  was  spent  in  pleasure,  for  a 
magnificent  spring  gushed  out  of  the  rocks  and 
formed  a  fine  stream  for  bathing,  swimming,  wash 
ing  of  clothes,  &c. ;  several  smaller  springs  added 
their  contributions  to  the  stream,  and  to  the  delight 
of  the  men  these  springs  gushed  out  from  be 
tween  the  rocks  near  the  surface  of  the  ground  and 
had  a  perpendicular  fall  of  about  thirty  feet,  where 
the  water  struck  on  a  ledge  of  rocks  and  fell  in  a 
mist-like  shower  to  the  bottom  of  the  ravine  twelve 
or  fifteen  feet  lower.  Under  this  stream  of  mist 
forty  or  fifty  of  the  men  would  assemble  for  the  pur 
pose  of  taking  a  cool  shower-bath. 

Large  fires  were  kindled  all  through  the  woods, 
and  the  men  (officers  also)  indulged   in  boiled  and 

17 


370     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST    REGIMENT 

roasted  green  corn  to  their  entire  satisfaction.  The 
damage  done  to  this  large  field  of  corn  cannot  be 
estimated  by  dollars  and  cents.  The  whole  column 
had  marched  through  the  heart  of  it — men,  teams, 
artillery,  ambulances,  horses,  mules,  and  cattle,  all, 
all  had  traversed  its  length  and  breadth.  When 
they  had  passed  through  and  halted,  a  well  beaten 
road,  one  hundred  and  "fifty  to  two  hundred  yards 
wide,  looked  as  if  it  might  have  been  a  public  high 
way  for  constant  travel  since  the  days  of  Noah — not 
a  vestige  to  be  seen  that  indicated  the  least  sign  of 
vegetation  ever  growing  in  that  well-beaten  path, 
which  had  only  a  few  short  hours  before  presented 
seemingly  an  almost  impregnable  barrier  of  grow 
ing  maize.  Did  the  damage  stop  here  it  would  not 
appear  much — but  the  ravages  of  the  men  for  a 
whole  night  and  day  w-as  not  inconsiderable  ;  be 
sides,  there  were  all  the  mules,  horses,  and  bullocks 
belonging  to  teams — guns,  caissons,  ambulances — 
and  the  officers — all  these  were  fed  on  the  green 
fodder  until  they  could  eat  no  more.  The  drove  of 
cattle  alone  destroyed  acres  of  it,  after  they  were 
done  feeding,  by  roaming  and  chasing  each  other 
over  and  through  it.  If  the  field  was  worth  one 
million  of  dollars  before  the  corps  squatted  thereon, 
it  was  not  worth  one  thousand  dollars  when  that 
body  left  it. 

This  long  rest  afforded  the  stragglers  full  oppor 
tunity  to  reach  the  corps  and  get  rested.  Some  of 
their  feet  were  frightful  to  look  at — swollen  to  nearly 
twice  their  natural  size — the  toe-nails  squeezed  into 
the  flesh,  from  which  the  blood  oozed  out — large 
blisters  on  the  soles,  sides,  arid  heels  of  their  feet ; 
and  to  them  alone  were  their  sufferings  actually 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  371 

known.  By  the  time  the  column  was  ready  to  leave 
they  had  their  feet  well  protected  with  pieces  of 
blankets  and  tents,  which  were  wrapped  around 
them. 

At  4  p.  M.  of  that  day  (22d),  the  command  to 
"Forward!"  was  given,  and  the  column  started  oft' 
in  fine  style.  Dark,  heavy  clouds,  began  to  gather 
in  the  southwest.  The  distant  thunder,  and  the 
sharp  flashes  of  lightning,  indicated  an  approaching 
storm.  Two  miles  further  was  the  bridge  that 
crossed  the  Big  Black.  Could  it  be  reached  before 
the  storm  arrived,  all  would  be  well  ;  if  not,  another 
night  must  be  spent  on  that  side  of  the  stream.  The 
elements  seemed  to  enter  into  the  race  as  if  con 
scious  of  lile  ;  the  column  pushed  on  with  vigorous 
steps,  each  man  determined  to  do  his  best  to  get  over 
the  river  before  the  storm  could  reach  them.  On, 
on  !  came  the  threatening  clouds — louder  and  louder 
roared  the  thunder — brighter  and  more  vivid  flashed 
the  lightning.  Closer  is  the  column  to  the  bridge. 
Only  one  mile,  and  then  all  will  be  well.,  Now,  only 
half  a  mile!  Each  one,  with  upturned  face,  is 
watching  the  coming  clouds,  whose  very  edges 
seemed  fringed  with  liquid  fire.  A  drop  from  the 
clouds  tells  them  the  storm  is  here.  Oh,  what  sus 
pense  !  only  one  fourth  of  a  mile  from  the  coveted 
spot,  and  the  awful  storm  breaks  on  their  head  with 
all  the  fury  of  the  demons  ! 

What  had  been,  only  a  few  moments  before,  sti 
fling  dust,  was  now  an  almost  impassable  bed  of 
mortar,  making  the  progress  painfully  slow,  and 
filling  the  shoes  full  of  water,  rnud,  and  gravel. 

When  the  head  of  the  column  reached  the  bridge, 
the  surface  of  the  stream  was  not  within  six  feet  of 


372     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

the  bridge's  bottom.  When  the  left  reached  it;  the 
water  ran  over  the  floor  at  least  three  feet  deep, 
through  which  men  and  teams  were  obliged  to  wade. 
The  water  kept  on  increasing  in  depth,  so  that 
eleven  teams  did  not  succeed  in  getting  over  that 
night. 

As  each  rank  crossed  the  bridge,  the  men  broke 
for  shelter  in  a  large  log  building  that  stood  to  the 
left  of  the  road  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river. 
Several  smaller  buildings  in  the  vicinity  were  soon 
filled  to  repletion.  The  men  all  remained  under 
shelter  until  the  storm  abated,  which  was  near 
night,  when  the  column  started  again  for  "  Mc- 
Call's,"  where  it  arrived  about  10  P.  M.,  drenched  to 
the  skin,  and  covered  with  mud  from  head  to  foot. 

If  the  marching  was  hard,  on  account  of  heat  and 
dust,  before  the  rain,  it  was  horrid  after  the  rain. 
An  attempt  was  made  to  march  the  column  in  the 
road,  but  the  men  sticking  fast  in  the  mud  and 
losing  their  shoes,  induced  Col.  Schall  to  leave  the 
road  and  take  to  the  fields,  as  being  better,  but  it 
was  found  to  be  all  alike ;  and  the  men  deployed  on 
their  own  account  as  skirmishers,  so  as  to  not  step 
in  the  footprints  of  any  other  man,  as  it  was  the 
only  manner  in  which  they  could  get  along ;  but 
even  in  this  way  they  sank  in  over  shoe-top. 

On  arriving  at  "  McCall's,"  the  regiment  bivou 
acked  on  either  side  of  the  road,  close  to  a  lot  of 
buildings,  where  there  was  a  well  of  good  water  • 
but  the  ground  whereon  the  men  had  lain  all  night, 
looked  in  the  morning  more  like  a  mammoth  hog 
pen  that  had  been  overflowed.  After  the  regiment 
had  partaken  of  its  morning  meal  of  green  corn  and 
cup  of  coffee,  it  again  started  for  Milldale,  about 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  373 

ten  miles  distant,  where  it  arrived  about  8J  A.  M. 
on  the  morning  of  the  23d,  1863. 

An  extract  gives  a  very  good  account  of  the  mud 
and  rain.  The  letter  is  dated  Milldale,  July  24th, 
1863: 

"We  left  Jackson  last  Monday  morning  at  4  o'clock,  and 
got  here  yesterday  at  83-  A.  M.,  marching  day  and  night.  It 
is  set  down  as  being  the  hardest  march  that  the  9th  Army 

Corps  has  ever  done We  only  had  a  day  and  a  half's 

rations  for  the  whole  march  of  nearly  four  days,  and  no  water 
to  be  had,  of  much  account,  until  Wednesday  night,  when  an 
other  of  these  southern  thunder-storms  came  up  and  deluged 
everything,  making  marching  very  toilsome  and  killing.  We, 
as  a  matter  of  course,  got  very  wet,  for  a  rain  seldom  stops  a 
inarch,  and  about  11  o'clock  that  night  we  lay  down  and  slept 
in  mud  almost  knee  deep,  just  as  sound  as  if  we  had  been 
in  the  best  feather  beds.  It  is  strange  what  a  man  will  get 
used  to." 

And  again,  another  extract : 

"  On  our  march  from  Jackson  we  stripped  cornfields,  water 
melon  patches,  peach  and  apple  trees,  and  all  the  ripe  fruit 
within  our  reach.  I  had  a  good  mess  of  fresh  ripe  figs  while 
in  Jackson.  I  ascended  a  tree  and  eat  a  few.  They  are  de 
licious  When  fully  ripe." 

Another  extract,  from  a  private  letter  dated 
July  28th  : 

"We  are  enjoying  a  fine  rest,  which  we  all  need,  God 
knows.  The  regiment  is  very  sickly  ;  in  fact,  the  whole  corps 
is.  It  has  been  produced  by  over-heat,  over-marching,  and  the 
use  of  stagnant  pond  water  to  drink  while  on  the  march,  very 
little  to  eat,  and  the  want  of  rest." 

After  getting  back  to  Milldale,  one  hundred  men 
were  detailed  from  the  regiment  (and  the  same  from 
each  in  the  brigade),  daily,  to  dig  rifle  pits,  and  to 
clear  off  the  vast  wilderness  in  front  of  the  earth 
works,  so  as  to  give  the  mounted  guns  full  sweep 


374     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

of  the  surrounding  country  in  case  the  enemy 
should  deem  it  prudent  to  make  an  attack  on  Mc- 
Pherson's  army  after  the  withdrawal  of  the  Ninth 
Corps. 

An  occasional  dress-parade  was  had,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  reading  off  the  various  orders  that  accumu 
lated  in  the  adjutant's  office.  Among  the  orders 
read,  was  one  from  General  Grant,  of  a  congratu 
latory  character,  as  follows  : 

HEAD-QUARTERS,  DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  TENNESSEE, 
VICKSBURG,  Miss.,  July  31sZ,  1803. 

In  returning  the  9tli  Corps  to  its  former  command,  it  is  with 
pleasure  that  the  General  commanding  acknowledges  its  valu 
able  services  in  the  campaign  just  closed.  Aiming  at  Vicks- 
burg  opportunely,  taking  position  to  hold  at  bay  Johnston's 
army,  then  threatening  the  forces  investing  the  city,  it  was 
ready  and  eager  to  assume  the  aggressive  at  any  moment. 

After  the  fall  of  Vicksburg  it  formed  part  of  the  army  which 
drove  Johnston  from  his  position  near  the  Big  Black  river  into 
his  intrenchments  at  Jackson,  and  after  a  siege  of  eight  days, 
compelled  him  to  fly  in  disorder  from  the  Mississippi  Valley. 

The  endurance,  valor  and  general  good  conduct  of  the  9th 
Corps  are  admired  by  all,  and  its  valuable  co-operation  in 
achieving  the  final  triumph  of  the  campaign,  is  gratefully  ac 
knowledged  by  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee. 

Maj.  Gen.  Parke  will  cause  the  different  regiments  and  bat 
teries  of  his  command  to  inscribe  upon  their  banners  and  gui 
dons,  "Vicksburg  and  Jackson." 

By  order  of 

Maj.  Gen.  U.  S.  GRANT. 

T.  S.  BOWERS,  A.  A.  A.  Gen. 

Below  will  be  found  another  letter  from  T.  H.  P., 
the  "Defender's  "  correspondent : 

SNYDER'S,  NEAR  VICKSBURG,  August  3(Z,  18G3. 
Another  week  has  passed  and  still  we  are  in  this  most  mis 
erable  of  all  states,  Mississippi.    We  were  visited  last  week  by 
one  of  the  most  violent  hurricanes  that  we  have  ever  seen  in 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      375 

these  parts,  attended  with  heavy  thunder,  lightning  and  rain, 
filling  the  air  with  the  little  shelter  tents,  boughs  of  trees  and 
everything  else  that  wind  could  Lear  aloft.  Thunder  storms 
are  very  frequent  occurrences  here  ;  we  had  one  on  the  26th, 
one  on  the  27th,  and  a  severe  one  on  the  28th,  and  another  on 
the  1st  inst.  The  thunder  here  is  of  nearly  one  continual  peal 
after  another,  reminding  one  very  much  of  the  terrific  bombard 
ment  of  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  last  December.  The  rain  falls  in 
torrents,  causing  the  gorges  and  ravines  to  fill  and  swell  to  the 
magnitude  of  small  rivers,  carrying  away  all  bridges  and 
crossings,  and  even  carrying  away  mules  and  other  live  stock. 
The  principal  damage  that  we  sustained  was  the  loss  of  one 
day's  bread  in  the  hands  of  the  bakers,  and  a  few  pieces  of 
tents. 

Since  we  have  been  back  from  Jackson,  the  boys  have  been 
supplying  themselves  with  another  outfit  of  clothing  that  will 
all  be  hungup  "on  the  ground,"  when  another  hard  march 
presents. 

It  is  fearful  to  contemplate  the  sickness  of  this  corps  ;  some 
regiments  arc  burying  two  or  three  every  day.  The  20th 
Michigan  have  a  fatality  among  them  that  is  diminishing  their 
ranks  rapidly.  I  have  not  learned  what  the  disease  is,  but 
those  who  are  the  unfortunate  victims  do  not  suffer  long,  three 
or  four  hours  are  sufficient  to  pass  them  to  that  "bourne  from 
whence  no  traveller  returns."  We  suppose  it  to  be  yellow 
fever.  If  it  is,  the  surgeons  are  careful  to  keep  it  shady. 

Our  regiment  still  keeps  its  health  the  best  of  any  in  the 
whole  corps,  although  we  have  had  as  many  as  fifty  on  the 
sick  report  daily,  for  several  days.  There  are,  however,  very 
few  serious  cases,  diarrhoea  being  the  prevalent  disease. 

We  are  enjoying  fresh  baked  bread  now  daily,  and  we  now 
can  set  ourselves  down  to  our  table  on  the  ground,  and  "let 
our  feet  hang  down,"  and  enjoy  our  coffee  and  toast  and  fried 
bread,  for  you  must  know  that  we  are  all  good  cooks.  Individ 
uals  have  ovens  dug  in  the  banks  and  rifle  pits,  and  carry  on 
the  pie  and  cake  baking  to  such  an  extent  that  your  Norris 
City  family  bakers  would  blush  to  think  that  they  were  not  in 
the  army  where  they  might  perfect  themselves  in  the  baking 
business.  Our  peach  and  apple  pics  are  some,  I  tell  you,  and 
the  boys  bring  in  large  quantities  of  fine  peaches  every  day,  but 
they  arc  used  principally  for  pies. 

There  is  not  much  prospect  before  us  of  getting  away  from 


376     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

here  for  a  week  at  least  to  come.  Some  few  troops  of  the  1st 
Brigade,  1st  Division,  9th  Corps,  have  left  here  on  boats,  and 
they  are  sending  off  their  sick  and  wounded  to  Keokuk,  Iowa, 
as  fast  as  they  can  obtain  transportation  for  them. 

Our  worthy  chaplain,  D.  G.  Mallory,  has  tendered  his  resig 
nation  as  chaplain  to  our  regiment.  It  has  been  accepted,  and 
he  will  leave  in  a  day  or  two  for  home. 

Whiskey  has  been  ordered  to  be  issued  to  every  man  in  the 
whole  corps  until  we  arrive  at  our  destination.  No  doubt  a  ju 
dicious  use  of  that  stimulant  will  serve  to  counteract  the  bad 
effects  of  bad  water,  and  prove  highly  beneficial  to  the  men  of 
this  corps.  A  rumor  has  been  rife  in  camp  for  a  couple  of  days 
that  Charleston,  S.  C.,  has  fallen,  but  as  we  cannot  get  any 
news  here  until  it  becomes  stale  and  forgotten  at  home,  all  that 
we  can  do  is  to  hope  that  the  said  rumor  may  prove  true. 

I  must  tell  you  a  little  of  the  crops  of  the  interior  of  the  State 
of  Mississippi,  as  far  as  I  have  been.  The  cotton  crop  has  been 
literally  ignored.  I  have  seen  but  one  place  wherein  cotton  was 
growing  and  that  was  but  a  small  piece  of  not  more  than  three 
acres.  There  is  but  little  tobacco  planted,  and  what  little  there 
is  of  it  will  make  but  a  very  small  crop,  because  it  has  been 
worked  very  little,  and  consequently  is  overrun  with  weeds.  I 
saw  but  one  field  in  with  sugar  cane  ;  it  contained  fifty  to  seventy- 
five  acres,  and  if  its  owner  returns  in  due  season  to  secure  it,  he 
will  no  doubt  reap  a  full  crop.  There  arc  immense  fields  of 
beans  planted,  no  doubt  "to  aid  and  comfort  the  enemy." 
But  for  cornfields,  Mississippi  can  beat  all  creation.  A  corn 
field  here  is  generally  -computed  not  by  acres  but  by  miles. 
Plenty  of  them  contain  ten  to  twelve  square  miles,  in  fact  it  is 
impossible  to  find  the  limits  of  the  cornfields,  for  almost  every 
square  foot  of  arable  land  is  in  with  corn,  showing  that  the 
planters  invariably  obeyed  Jeff.  Davis'  edict  to  lessen  the  cot 
ton  crop  and  enlarge  the  corn  crop.  I  have  not  seen  one  stalk 
of  wheat,  rye  or  oats.  Some  few  gardens  have  the  Irish  pota 
toes  in  very  limited  quantities,  but  vegetables  are  a  very  scarce 
article  throughout'ttiis  State,  while  fruits  are  vice  versa,  peaches, 
apples,  figs,  watermelons,  nutmegs  and  citrons,  grapes  and 
Pawpaws.  None  of  the  above  fruits,  excepting  the  watermelons 
and  canteloupes,  are  cultivated.  From  every  appearance  they 
grow  wherever  a  seed  accidentally  falls  on  the  ground  and  takes 
root,  as  you  will  find  no  regularity  in  their  position.  Fresh  figs 
are  delicious  fruit,  and  are  to  be  found  in  abundance  through- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      877 

out  the  State.  The  first  crop  being  over,  the  second  crop  is 
now  in  its  height,  and  the  few  remaining  citizens  scattered 
through  the  country  bring  them  into  camp,  and  sell  them 
readily  at  fifteen  cents  per  dozen  ;  peaches  sell  for  twenty-five 
cents  per  dozen,  watermelons  we  don't  buy,  we  generally  lay 
siege  to  a  patch  and  it  soon  surrenders  unconditionally,  to 
our  gratification,  but  to  the  mortification  of  Johnny  Rebs. 

Another  order  has  been  received  from  Gen.  Grant,  compli 
mentary  to  the  9th  Corps  for  their  soldier-like  bearing,  bravery, 
and  endurance,  and  has  ordered  our  corps  commander,  Gen. 
Parke,  to  have  "Vicksburg  and  Jackson"  inscribed  upon 
the  regimental  flags  of  the  corps.  This  may  be  chalked 
down  as  one  instance  wherein  a  chieftain  has  seen  something 
in  this  corps  worthy  of  appreciation,  and  proving  himself 
doubly  a  hero  by  boldly  acknowledging  its  efficiency  in  face  of 
its  malignant  accusers.  For  I  believe  that  there  is  not  another 
corps  in  the  service  of  the  United  States  that  has  seen  more 
than  one-half  the  service  that  the  9th  Corps  has.  It  has  done 
more  hard  marching,  hard  fighting,  and  less  grumbling  than  any 
other  corps  out,  and  received  less  praise,  if  any,  than  any  other 
corps,  and  why  is  it  ?  Even  the  fate  of  the  Antietam  battle  hung 
upon  the  taking  of  the  bridge  by  the  51st  Pennsylvania  and  51st 
New  York,  who  are  a  part  of  the  9th  Corps,  and  I  was  told  on 
the  best  authority  that  McClellan  said,  after  the  bridge  was 
taken,  that  the  fate  of  the  battle  was  to  be  decided  on  charging 
the  rebels  away  from  it.  Well,  we  took  the  bridge  ;  but  who 
got  the  credit  ?  Did  we  ?  From  our  own  officers  AVC  did,  and 
had  we  black-mailed  a  batch  of  the  penny-a-liners  who  give 
honor  to  whom  honor  is  due,  our  corps  would  have  been 
lauded  to  the  very  echo,  but  as  it  was  the  work  of  the  9th 
corps,  its  paean  must  be  sung  by  some  future  impartial  historian. 
Yours,  &c.,  T.  H.  P. 

While  at  Milldale,  after  coming  from  Jackson,  the 
surgeons  of  the  regiment  ordered  a  full  ration  of 
whiskey  (one  gill)  to  be  issued  to  each  man  early  in 
the  morning,  to  assist  in  counteracting  the  bad 
effects  of  the  use  of  unwholesome  water,  and  to  give 
a  more  healthy  tone  to  the  men's  system — it  had  its 
desired  effect.  Chaplain  Mallory  tendered  his  resig- 


378     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIEST   EEGIMENT 

nation  on  account  of  ill  health,  a  notice  of  which 
appeared  in  the  columns  of  the  Defender. 

"Rev.  D.  G.  Mallory,  the  Chaplain  of  the  51st,  since  his 
resignation  and  return  home,  and  a  little  rest,  is  recuperating, 
and  will  soon  be  himself  again.  His  general  health  has  much 
improved,  although  the  severity  of  their  marching  in  Missis 
sippi  came  pretty  near  using  him  up,  with  the  soldiers  them 
selves.  We  'can't  see  the  point'  of  marching  men  to  death, 
in  such  a  sterile  region  as  they  were  in  down  there." 


OHAPTEE    VI. 

Haines'  Bluffs— On  the  Yazoo — Scenes  on  the  Father  of  Rivers 
— Heaving  the  lead — Wooding  up — Island  No.  Ten — Cairo, 
111. — Off  for  Ohio — Railroad  accident  and  loss  of  life — 
Cincinnati — Speech  from  Gen.  Burnside — Covington,  Ky. — 
Nicholasville — Camp  Parke — Crab  Orchard — Garrison  duty 
— Ordered  to  Knoxville,  T*enn.— The  performing  Zouave. 

ON"  the  6th  of  August  orders  were  issued  to  the 
regiment  to  be  ready  to  go  on  board  of  the  boats  at 
Haines's  Bluffs,  on  the  Yazoo  river,  to  return  to 
Kentucky  on  the  next  day.  Everything  was 
packed  and  sent  down  to  the  landing  early  on  the 
morning  of  the  7th,  the  regiment  soon  followed  ;  the 
distance  from  Milldale  to  the  boats  was  only  three 
miles,  but  it  was  one  hundred  miles  through  torture, 
for  the  heat  might  only  be  equalled  by  the  fiery 
furnace,  at  least  so  intense  was  the  heat  that  day 
that  it  took  the  regiment  two  and  a  half  hours  to  go 
the  three  miles,  no  less  than  twenty -two  men  were 
prostrated  by  the  rays  of  the  sun. 

On  arriving  at  the  landing  the  steamboat  that  was 
to  take  the  regiment  on  board  had  also  to  take  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      379 

famous  Durrell  battery  of  Beading,  and  the   regi 
ment  was  obliged  to  stand  in  the  hot  sun  while  the 
guns,  caissons,  horses,  and  men  were  being  put  on 
board,  to  accomplish  which  took  about  two  hours. 
There  being  no  place  under  which  the  men  could 
shelter  themselves   from  the  sun,    Col.    Schall    en 
deavored  to  get  permission  from  the  captain  of  the 
boat  to  allow  him  to  put  his  regiment  on  the  hurri 
cane  deck,  which  was  covered  with  an  awning,  until 
the  artillery  got  on  board,  after  which  he  would  dis 
tribute  his  men  over  the  boat  to  whatever  quarters 
they  should  be  assigned;  but  this  proposition  of  the 
humane  colonel  was  refused,  and  the  men  were  left 
standing  until  it  became  necessary  to  carry  several 
on  board  who  had  sunk  down  from  the  effects  of  the 
sun.     Col.  Schall  deserves  the  thanks  of  the  whole 
regiment  for  his  kind  attention  to  relieve  the  men 
from  their  torture  and  to  get  them  comfortable  quar 
ters  on  the  boat.     His  whole  heart  seemed  to  swell 
with  sympathy  for  them,  while  he  needed  as  much  for 
himself.     He  could  have  gone  on  the  boat  and  re 
mained  there  until  it  was  ready  to  receive  the  regi 
ment  ;  but  no,  his  heart  was  with  his  men,  and  with 
them    he   would   share   their  trials.     However,  the 
long-wished-for   moment  arrived,  and  at  12   M.  the 
men  rushed  pell-mell  on  the  boat,  regardless  of  the 
commands  of  the  captain  and  clerks  of  the  steamer, 
and  with,  the  approbation  of  their  commander,  who 
felt  that  the  captain  was   too   much  of  a  brute  to 
have  his  wishes  respected. 

The  men  sought  out  such  quarters  as  suited  their 
choice,  subject  only  to  Col.  Schall's  command.  At 
2  r.  M.  every  tiling  was  ready  for  leaving  the  banks 
of  the  sluggish  Yazoo  river,  the  hawser  was 


380     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

loosened,  and  the  steamer  glided  down  the  stream 
amid  the  cheering  of  those  on  board  and  on  land. 
Several  brass  bands  saluted  our  regiment  as  it 
passed  the  boats  that  were  loading  on  other  regi 
ments. 

A  little  before  sundown  the  steamer  passed  out 
of  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo  and  entered  the  Father 
of  Rivers,  when  she  swung  around  with  her  head  up 
stream  and  there  "laid  to''  for  about  an  hour,  when 
she  again  started  and  ran  all  night,  striking  the  bot 
tom  of  the  river  every  few  miles.  li  Heaving  of  the 
lead"  was  rather  an  amusing  affair  to  the  soldiers. 
As  the  man  that  made  the  soundings  would  exclaim 
"half  twain,"  "twain,"  or  "twain  one,"  &c.,  the 
soldiers  would  repeat  it  in  a  chorus,  much  to  the 
indignation  of  the  man  with  the  "lead."  It  was  an 
interesting  study  to  the  thoughtful  ones  to  note  the 
unevenness  of  the  bed  of  the  Mississippi  river ; 
some  places  scarce  water  enough  to  float  the  boat, 
and  in  less  than  half  the  boat's  length  ahead  it 
would  be  twenty  feet  more  than  was  needed  for  the 
floating  palace,  then  in  the  next  half  length  she 
would  stick  fast  on  the  bottom. 

Several  times  the  boat  ran  up  to  the  shore,  seem 
ingly  into  the  woods,  to  take  in  fuel,  but  only  once 
in  the  daytime  during  the  whole  trip  up,  all  other 
times  were  in  the  night.  When  up  above  the  Arkansas 
State  line  the  steamer  hauled  in  under  a  bluff  to  take 
in  wood.  The  rain  poured  down  in  torrents,  the 
night  was  of  Egyptian  darkness,  but  the  deck  hands 
could  not  be  prevailed  on  to  go  ashore  until  pickets 
were  sent  out  for  their  protection  ;  guerillas  had 
once  been  there  and  might  be  there  again.  The 
pickets  were  sent  ashore  and  posted  themselves 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      381 

only  a  few  yards  off  and  got  a  complete  drenching 
while  the  hands  were  "  wooding  up."  To  those  who 
never  saw  "  wooding  up  "  at  night  on  the  Mississippi 
it  would  be  an  interesting  sight — the  torches  em 
ployed  on  such  occasions  are  of  a  gigantic  size  and 
made  of  a  coarsely  woven  wire  basket,  which  is 
set  on  the  end  of  a  staff  about  four  feet  in  length, 
pointed  for  the  purpose  of  sticking  in  the  ground  ; 
a  large  ball  of  tow,  saturated  with  tar  and  turpen 
tine,  is  laid  in  the  wire  basket,  and  when  ignited, 
burns  for  a  long  time  and  sheds  a  lurid  glare  on 
surrounding  objects,  making  one  imagine  that  he  is 
in  the  place  of  one  of  the  weird  sisters  in  the  witch 
scene  in  Macbeth.  , 

A  little  after  daylight  on  the  morning  of  the  llth 
of  August  the  regiment  passed  the  renowned  Island 
No.  Ten,  between  it  and  the  eastern  bank  of  the 
river.  It  was  in  possession  principally  of  colored 
persons  who  were  refugees  from  Southern  rule.  The 
channel  here  is  narrow,  and  assisted  greatly  in  help 
ing  the  enemy  in  their  stubborn  resistance  for  the 
Union  possession  of  that  long-fought-for  place. 

On  the  14:th  the  regiment  disembarked  at  Cairo, 
111.  After  lying  there  all  that  night,  it  embarked 
next  day  on  the  cars  of  the  Illinois  Central  Eailroad 
for  Sandoval,  111.,  sixty  miles  east  of  St.  Louis,  Mo., 
where  it  changed  cars  for  those  of  the  broad-gauge 
Ohio  and  Mississippi  Eailroad,  and  proceeded  on  its 
way  to  Cincinnati.  All  along  the  line  of  the  railroad 
the  regiment  was  greeted  with  cheers,  waving  of 
handkerchiefs  in  the  hands  of  the  fair  sex,  hot  coffee, 
pies,  cakes,  sandwiches,  &c.  In  fact,  it  was  a  per 
fect  ovation,  such  as  any  regiment  might  be  proud 
to  receive.  Nothing  transpired  of  any  interest  while 


382      HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIKST    REGIMENT 

moving  by  rail,  until  within  a  mile  or  two  of  a  small 
hamlet  called  Shoals,  Indiana,  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  from  Cincinnati,  when,  about  7  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  the  train  of  ten  or  twelve  cars  met 
with  a  serious  accident  by  the  breaking  off  of  a 
flange,  causing  the  cars  to  leave  the  track  while  pass 
ing  over  a  bridge  that  spanned  a  small,  deep  river. 
The  train  was  midway  on  the  bridge  when  the  first 
car  left  the  iron,  and  the  three  cars  in  the  rear  fol 
lowed,  cutting  the  ties  and  bridge  timbers  nearly  off. 
When  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  or  two  hundred 
yards  past  the  bridge,  one  car  that  had  been  running 
on  the  edge  of  the  bank,  rolled  down  the  embank 
ment,  stopping  the  whole  train  with  a  crash.  Five 
cars  were  frightfully  piled  upon  each  other,  two  of 
which  were  reared  like  a  combed  roof.  The  corre 
spondent  of  the  Philadelphia  " Press"  writing  from 
Cincinnati,  describes  the  accident  in  detail.  Below 
we  give  his  own  language,  viz. : 

"CINCINNATI,  August  20th,  1863. 

"Memphis  looks  very  differently  now  from  what  it  did  when 
we  went  along  there  two  months  ago.  It  was  a  desolate,  for 
lorn-looking  place — dirty,  no  life,  no  business.  It  seemed  the 
change  of  a  conjurer — bustle,  stir,  hotels,  billiard-rooms,  res 
taurants,  and  drinking-houses  (the  peculiar  life  of  many  South 
ern  towns)  in  full  course.  But  Memphis  has  other  than  this 
peculiar  life  ;  it  has  fine  buildings,  has  a  rich  surrounding,  and 
the  easiest  modes  of  transit.  It  was  said  that  the  taking  of 
Vicksburg  was  not  believed  in  Memphis  until  long  after  the 
papers  in  the  North  contained  the  news.  But  Northern  papers 
of  the  9th  and  10th  of  July,  received  at  Memphis  on  the  15th 
and  16th,  with  their  graphic  accounts  of  it,  dispelled  the  last 
lingering  doubt. 

"Troops  returning  have  been  landed  at  Cairo,  and  passed 
over  the  railroads  from  there  to  Sandoval,  then  on  the  Ohio 
and  Mississippi  Road,  of  broad  gauge,  and  very  comfortable. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEKS.  383 

Indeed,  the  officers  of  that  road  are  to  be  commended  for  the 
promptness  with  which  they  have  furnished  transportation 
on  all  occasions  required  by  the  Government.  There  has 
never  been  any  delay  longer  than  necessary  to  transfer  the 
baggage.  Cars  in  abundance  were  always  ready.  Some  acci 
dents  have  occurred  which  have  given  rise  to  speculations 
rather  painful.  A  train,  on  Sunday  night,  having  on  board 
the  51st  Pennsylvania  Regiment,  and  headquarters  staff'  and 
horses,  was  thrown  from  the  track  a  mile  and  a-half  east  of 
Shoals.  It  was  the  third  or  fourth  car  from  the  engine  that 
seems  to  have  been  thrown  off',  and  went  crashing  along  over 
a  bridge  spanning  a  deep  stream,  cutting  the  ends  of  the  ties 
and  sleepers  completely  off;  and,  fifty  yards  from  the  catastro 
phe,  tearing  up  the  track  some  distance.  A  car  having  the 
officers'  baggage  rolled  down  the  embankment,  and  another, 
with  horses,  fell  on  the  top  of  it,  crushing  it  to  pieces.  Strange 
to  say,  of  four  or  five  men  in  the  car,  wTho  had  to  be  cut  out  of 
the  wreck,  but  one  was  killed,  and  he  was  sitting  on  a  chair  at 
the  open  door  of  the  car,  and  was  precipitated  out  by  the  first 
shock.  Over  these  two  cars,  two  others  were  raised  up,  end 
against  end  like  the  rafters  of  a  house.  One  had  horses  and 
the  other  a  company  of  men,  (H,  51st  P.  V.,)  with  some  on 
the  top,  but,  except  the  jamming  they  got  from  all  being  slid 
into  the  one  end,  were  not  at  all  hurt.  One  horse  was  smoth 
ered.  One  man  in  the  baggage  car  was  saved  from  smothering 
by  happening  to  have  his  nose  pushed  through  the  opening  in 
the  seat  of  an  army  saddle.  On  the  left  hand  side  of  the  track 
was  another  car  with  horses.  They  are  put  within  the  side 
opening  of  the  car,  and  boards  nailed  across,  leaving  the  centre 
of  the  car  open,  in  which  were  lying  four  or  five  negroes.  The 
accident  threw  horses  and  negroes  pell-mell  into  one  end,  but 
none  were  hurt,  though  they  scratched  their  woolly  heads  with 
astonishment  at  this  unexpected  deliverance. 

"One  man  of  the  lltli  New  Hampshire  had  his  head  and 
legs  crushed,  and  he  had  jumped  from  the  cars.  The  tops  of 
the  cars  were  full  of  men  who  had  made  their  beds  there.  Not 
one  was  hurt ;  though  some  were  landed  on  the  tops  of  the 
trees,  and  went  tumbling  away  down  into  the  ravine.  One  on 
his  descent  was  caught  by  a  limb  under  the  chin  and  hung 
there.  It  was  about  8  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and  most  were 
asleep.  A  telegraph  operator  brought  from  the  neighboring 


384:     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

town,  immediately  cut  the  wires  and  telegraphed  both  ways. 
Dr.  Martin  and  son  and  Dr.  Peck  came  from  Washington 
about  midnight,  to  find  all  very  coolly  sleeping,  and  all  things 
quiet,  notwithstanding  ten  cars  were  put  Iwrs  de  course, 
freighted  with  living  beings.  Indeed,  the  most  wonderful 
thing  was  the  coolness  of  these  soldiers.  There  was  no  noise 
or  confusion.  The  colonel  superintended,  and  as  many  men 
as  could  conveniently  work  were  busy  ;  the  rest  laid  down  and 
slept.  Many  within  a  car  or  two  of  the  accident  hardly  raised 
themselves  more  than  on  their  elbow,  and  at  that  distance  you 
would  hardly  believe  there  were  such  a  fearful  scene  so  little 
in  advance.  Old  railroaders,  who  had  been  in  numberless 
smashes,  said  they  never  saw  such  a  wreck.  The  work  of  reliev 
ing  the  horses  was  a  difficult  and  dangerous  task,  and  required 
the  coolest  and  steadiest  of  men.  The  horses  were  piled  all  to 
gether.  There  was  imminent  danger  of  the  cars  falling,  espe 
cially  the  two  ''rafters."  Old  wreckers  would  not  have  done 
as  these  brave  men  did.  One  went  bravely  in  among  the 
heels  of  the  horses  to  rescue  a  man.  Some  were  cooking  coffee 
while  the  others  worked,  and  all  laid  down  and  slept  when 
they  were  assured  that  every  life  was  reached.  The  surgeon 
of  the  regiment,  Dr.  Duffield,  was  cool,  calm,  and  prompt ; 
naturally  so — perhaps  something  of  it  acquired  on  the  fields  of 
Antietam,  Fredcricksburg,  and  such  like.  Col.  Ilartranft  and 
Lieut. -Col.  Schall  were  able  and  energetic  in  their  management 
of  the  fractures.  I  have  heard  these  men  speak  with  grateful 
affection  of  these  officers  ;  of  their  care  in  their  long  campaigns, 
and  of  late,  especially,  in  the  campaign  in  Mississippi,  Avhcn 
Lieut. -Col.  Schall  was  in  command  of  the  2d  Brigade,  2d 
Division,  as  this  regiment  filed  off  at  Jackson,  to  enter  the 
front,  said,  "Take  good  care  of  the  men,  colonel."  He  need 
not  say  he  would;  he  had,  and  did.  It  was  what  "Old 
Johnny,"  as  the  men  call  Col.  H.,  always  did  for  them.  I 
would  not  wish  for  more  honor  than  to  have  my  name  written 
on  the  hearts  of  the  men  of  a  regiment  as  theirs  arc." 

A  little  allowance  must  be  made  for  the  mistake, 
in  the  last  paragraph  by  the  u  Press's"  correspondent, 
not  intentional,  wherein  he  says,  "when  Lieut. -Col. 
Schall  was  in  command  of  the  2d  Brigade,  2d  Divi 
sion,"  &c.,  he  certainly  intended  to  say  "Col.  Hart 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      385 

rarift,"  as  it  was  Col.  II.  who  was  in  command  of  the 
brigade  and  Lieut.-Col.  Schall  of  the  regiment  at  the 
time  the  "  regiment  filed  off." 

After  working  at  the  wreck  until  late  at  night, 
and  all  the  maimed,  car-imprisoned  men  and  horses 
had  been  got  out  and  cared  for,  the  men  lay  down 
in  and  on  the  cars  to  rest  for  the  night.  As  soon  as 
daylight  came  next  morning,  the  wreckers  and  the 
men  of  the  51st  began  to  clear  the  track  of  the  debris, 
which  was  accomplished  by  noon,  so  the  train  could 
proceed  on  its  way.  But  before  leaving,  the  men 
belonging  to  Co.  D  applied  to  an  undertaker  in 
Shoals  to  make  a  coffin  for  Thomas  McQuerin,  the 
soldier  who  was  killed  ;  but  the  generous  undertaker 
wanted  to  know  where,  when,  and  how  he  was  to  get 
his  pay !  The  amount,  §10,  was  raised,  and  the 
coffin  left  in  the  hands  of  the  undertaker,  who 
promised  that  he  " would  have  him  buried  if  he 
could!"  The  regiment  having  to  get  aboard  of  the 
train,  could  not  remain  behind  to  see  if  their  com 
rade  did  get  buried.  Some  doubts  to  that  effect 
exist  at  this  day.  After  placing  the  body  of  Mc 
Querin  in  the  hands  of  the  undertaker,  it  was  found 
that  a  man  (name  unknown)  belonging  to  the  llth 
N.  II.,  lay  dead  on  a  stretcher  near  the  track,  an 
other  victim  of  the  smash  up  ;  but  as  he  was  there  a 
stranger,  it  is  safe  to  say  that  the  poor  fellow  had  to 
be  buried  by  the  railroad  company,  as  no  one  ap 
peared  to  take  any  notice  of  him  only  through  curi 
osity.  Although  it  seems  inhuman  to  neglect  a  fellow 
comrade,  yet  when  we  consider  all  the  ghastly  sights 
of  a  battle-field,  on  which  a  true  soldier  is  compelled 
to  look,  they  cannot  do  otherwise  than  blunt  the 
finer  feelings,  and  an  expression  of  sympathy  rarely 


386     HISTOEY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIEST   EEGIMENT 

gets  utterance.  When  the  train  arrived  at  Seymour 
an  ale-wagon,  that  was  delivering  ale  at  the  hotel, 
was  besieged  by  a  number  of  the  51st,  and  a  keg  of 
the  extract  of  malt  was  removed  unceremoniously 
from  the  wagon  to  the  top  of  one  of  the  cars;  the 
driver  begged  for  the  men  not  to  take  the  keg  away 
as  he  was  not  the  owner,  saying,  at  the  same  time, 
that  they  were  welcome  to  the  ale,  and  requesting 
them  to  leave  the  keg  behind;  but  the  boys  "couldn't 
see  it,"  and  so  took  the  keg  along. 

It  was  originally  intended  that  the  regiment  should 
leave  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Railroad  at  this 
place,  and  take  the  cars  on  another  road  for  the  Ohio 
river,  and  proceed  to  Louisville,  Ky. ;  but,  for  rea 
sons  never  made  known,  the  original  order  was 
countermanded,  and  the  regiment  kept  on  to  Cincin 
nati,  where  it  arrived  on  the  night  of  the  17th. 

Before  leaving  the  Yazoo  country  a  number  of 
furloughs  had  been  granted  in  the  different  regi 
ments,  the  51st  coming  in  for  a  goodly  share. 
Lieut.- Col.  Schall  having  the  dating  of  them,  gave 
every  man  an  extra  day,  making  it  twenty-one 
days  in  which  to  report  back  to  the  regiment. 

After  arriving  at  Cincinnati,  the  regiment  pro 
ceeded  to  the  "  Burnet  house,"  the  headquarters  of 
Gen.  Burnside,  who  made  a  short  speech  to  the  men 
from  the  balcony.  He  was  loudly  cheered  by  them, 
and  when  silence  reigned,  one  man,  Thomas  Cornog, 
exclaimed  in  reply  to  the  general's  expression  that 
they  were  to  go  into  Kentucky,  "  We  want  you  along 
with  us,  General."  The  General  smiled  and  answered, 
"I'll  be  with  you  in  heart,  if  not  in  person."  The 
regiment  then  proceeded  to  the  Ohio  river,  and 
crossed  over  to  Covington,  Ky.,  where  it  went  into 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      887 

carnp  a  short  distance  east  of  the  city.  While  they 
were  pitching  their  tents,  the  paymaster  arrived  and 
paid  the  regiment  two  months  dues,  which  carne 
very  good  to  those  who  wanted  to  send  their  money 
home.  As  the  officers  and  men  who  had  leave  of 
absence  and  furloughs  were  unable  to  get  away  be 
fore  the  middle  of  that  night,  every  officer  and 
man  who  then  left  for  home  had  been  entrusted 
with  large  amounts  to  take  with  them,  all  of  which 
were  promptly  delivered. 

Continuing  in  this  camp  several  days  afforded  the 
boys  a  fine  chance  of  enjoying  themselves  in  the 
city  of  Cincinnati ;  many  of  them  took  up  their 
quarters  there  and  visited  the  camp  a  few  minutes 
every  day. 

Col.  Hartranft,  Capt.  Jos.  K.  Bolton,  and  Capt. 
Wm.  Allebough,  had  left  this  place  to  enjoy  their 
"  leave  "  at  home.  Capt.  Bolton  went  home  on  sick 
leave,  having  very  sore  eyes,  caused  by  hard  march 
ing,  hard  fighting  and  exposure  during  the  Missis 
sippi  campaign.  A  notice  of  Capt.  Allebough's  ar 
rival  appeared  in  a  ISTorristown  paper,  viz. : 

OUR  REGIMENT. — Capt.  Allebough  is  home  looking-  well 
after  the  fatigue  of  the  late  marches — others  from  the  regiment 
are  coming.  AVe  wish  they  were  all  home,  and  this  wicked, 
cruel  war  over. 

In  another  issue  of  the  same  paper,  appeared  the 
following  : 

"  AT  HOME.— Lieut.  Geo.  Schall,  Win.  P.  Schall  and  Sergt. 
Geo.  Smith  of  the  51st  Reg.  P.  V.  arrived  home  on  furloughs 
on  Saturday  last.  They  look  well." 

"SERENADE. — Our  band  serenaded  Capt.  Joseph  K.  Bolton, 
on  last  Tuesday  evening.  He  has  been  home  for  sonic  time 


388     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

past  suffering  with  sore  eyes.     He  is  now,  however,  improving 
and  we  hope  ere  long  will  be  quite  restored." 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  liberal  citizens  of  Norris- 
town  appreciated  that  true  soldier,  Capt.  Jos.  K. 
Bolton,  by  tendering  a  worthy  compliment  to  his 
bravery  and  gentlemanly  manners.  The  regiment 
after  lying  in  the  vicinity  of  Covington  for  about  a 
week,  took  the  cars,  proceeded  to  Nicholasville  Ky., 
encamped  almost  adjoining  the  great  Kentucky  ren 
dezvous,  "  Camp  Nelson,"  and  there  constituted 
"Camp  Parke,"  in  honor  of  Maj.  Gen.  John  G. 
Parke,  who  was  in  command  of  a  division  in  the 
9th  Army  Corps.  The  regiment  lay  in  that  loca 
tion  near  two  weeks,  when  it  received  orders  to  re 
port  at  Crab  Orchard.  While  at  Camp  Parke  the 
health  of  the  regiment  was  not  good,  owing  no  doubt 
to  the  over-indulgence  while  at  Covington.  One 
man  by  the  name  of  Arthur  McGill,  of  Co.  I,  died 
here  from  carnp  fever,  with  only  a  few  hours'  sick 
ness. 

On  the  10th  September,  the  regiment  left  Camp 
Parke,  reached  Crab  Orchard  on  the  llth,  and  estab 
lished  quarters  one  mile  north  of  the  latter  place, 
and  adjoining  a  large  encampment  of  invalids. 
While  here  a  large  number  of  officers  and  men 
were  transferred  to  the  invalid  corps,  but  did  not 
join  their  new  organization  until  towards  the  close 
of  the  month. 

About  the  14th  of  the  month,  an  order  was 
issued  for  the  regiment  to  report  to  Gen.  Burnside 
at  Knoxville,  East  Tennessee.  He  had  taken  Cum 
berland  Gap  a  few  days  before  by  strategy. 

Below  is  Burnside's  report  to  Gen.  Halleck,  also 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      389 

Gen.  Rosecrans',  who  was  acting  in  conjunction  with 
Burn  side,  viz.  : 

Official  Despatches  from  Gens.  Burnside  and  Bosecrans. 

"WASHINGTON,  Sept.  11. — The  following  official  report  from 
Gen.  BUIINSTDE,  concerning  the  capture  of  Cumberland  Gap, 
has  been  received  at  Headquarters  : 

"  CUMBERLAND  GAP,  Sept.  9, 1863. — To  Maj.-Gen.  HALLECK, 
General-in-Chief:  I  have  telegraphed  you  of  our  movements 
up  to  the  occupation  of  Knoxville  by  our  forces.  Since  then  a 
cavalry  force  has  been  sent  up  the  railroad  to  within  a  few 
miles  of  Bristol,  capturing  some  three  locomotives  and  twenty 
odd  cars. 

"  Another  force,  composed  of  two  regiments  of  infantry  and 
two  of  cavalry  I  brought  to  this  place  in  person,  to  reinforce  Gen. 
Shackleford,  who  was  here  with  two  regiments  of  cavalry, 
Col.  De  Coursey  being  on  the  Kentucky  side  with  a  brigade, 
which  I  started  in  that  direction  before  leaving  Kentucky. 
The  infantry  brigade  inarched  from  Knoxville  to  this  place, 
sixty  miles,  in  fifty-two  hours.  The  garrison  here,  consisting 
of  over  two  thousand  men  and  fourteen  pieces  of  artillery,  made 
an  unconditional  surrender  at  8  o'clock  P.  M.  to-day,  with 
out  a  fight. 

"A.  E.  BTJRNSIDE,  Maj.-Gen." 

"The  following  despatch  from  Gen.  ROSECRANS  has  been 
received  at  Head-quarters :  CAMP  NEAR  TRENTON,  GEORGIA, 
Sept,  9,  1863.— To  Maj-Gen.  HALLECK,  General-in-Chief:— 
Chattanooga  is  ours  without  a  struggle,  and  East  Tennessee 
is  free  !  Our  move  on  the  enemy's  flank  progresses,  while  the 
tail  of  his  retreating  column  will  not  escape  unmolested.  Our 
troops  from  this  side  entered  Chattanooga  about  noon  ;  those 
north  of  the  river  are  now  crossing. 

"W.  S.  ROSECRANS,  Maj.-Gen." 

A  great  change  seemed  to  force  itself  upon  the 
regiment  just  in  the  few  days  from  the  12th  to  the 
16th  of  September.  At  the  last-mentioned  date, 
there  were  only  three  commissioned  officers  present 
with  the  regiment.  Col.  Hartranft  absent  on  leave, 


390     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

Lieut.-Col.  Schall  in  command  of  the  2d  brigade,  2d 
division,  Maj.  Wm.  J.  Bolton  on  leave  of  absence, 
surgeons  all  absent,  and  only  three  line  officers  pres 
ent  for  duty.  Capt.  Bisbing  was  in  comma  :d  of 
the  regiment.  The  companies  were  commanded  by 
sergeants. 

Co.  A,  under  command  of  2d  sergeant. 

"  B,  "  "  1st  sergeant. 

"  C,  "  2d  Lieut.  Wm.  F.  Thomas. 

"  D,  "  "  5th  sergeant. 

"  E,  "  "  1st 

"  F,  "  1st         " 

"  G-,  "  "  3d 

"  H,  "  Captain 

"  I,  "  (l  1st  sergeant. 

"  K;  "  lt  1st  sergeant. 

At  this  date  (16th),  the  order  to  reinforce  Burn- 
side  in  Tennessee  was  countermanded,  and  the 
brigade  was  distributed  for  the  several  duties  below 
mentioned. 

The  51st  N.  Y.  was  stationed  at  Hickrnan's  Bridge 
to  guard  it,  as  they  reported  only  forty-one  men  fit 
ior  duty. 

The  35th  Mass,  and  the  51st  P.  Y.  were  posted  at 
Crab  Orchard,  for  garrison  duty. 

The  llth  N.  H.  were  sent  out  to  London,  forty-five 
miles  from  Crab  Orchard,  to  do  duty  at  Post  Pitman. 

The  21st  Mass,  was  transferred  to  1st  brigade. 
This  scattering  of  the  brigade  led  the  men  of  the  51st 
to  think  they  were  fixed  now,  for  once  in  their  term 
permanently,  and  were  to  do  garrison  duty  for  a 
certainty.  This  supposition  wrought  considerable 
discredit  on  the  regiment,  for  feeling  they  were 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  391 

"  lords  and  masters  of  the  situation,"  they  in 
dulged  too  freely  in  Bourbon,  and  through  its  in 
fluence,  a  sutler's  establishment  near  the  toll-gate 
above  Crab  Orchard  was  "  torn  out,"  or  more  prop 
erly  speaking  "  cleaned  out,"  of  all  canned  fruits, 
whiskey,  tobacco,  and  everything  else.  The  exact 
participators  in  this  outrage  were  never  discovered, 
or  if  they  were,  nothing  was  done  and  the  affair  was 
hushed  up. 

The  men  now  were  having  a  "good  time  of  it" — • 
at  least,  so  they  supposed — but  "  the  way  of  the 
transgressor  is  hard,"  and  it  was  verified  in  twenty- 
one  cases  of  breach  of  discipline  in  the  regiment. 
Whiskey  was  the  whole  cause.  It  was  very  plenty 
in  that  section  of  country,  easily  obtained,  and 
obtained  it  was  to  excess  ;  and  for  days  in  suc 
cession  a  large  number  of  men,  also  non-com's, 
were  intoxicated,  until  the  provost  marshal  at  Crab 
Orchard  had  to  issue  prohibitory  orders  to  the  citi 
zens  and  sutlers  against  selling  any  liquor  unless 
on  an  order  signed  by  a  commissioned  officer.  The 
continued  drunkenness  of  some  of  the  men  in  the 
regiment  brought  them  to  disgrace ;  for  no  less  than 
twenty-one  non-commissioned  officers  were  reduced 
to  the  ranks  by  their  company  commanders,  ap 
proved  by  Lieut.  Col.  Schall. 

Even  this  did  not  seem  to  check  it  at  first,  but 
the  provost  marshal's  order  coming  fast  on  its  heels, 
had  in  a  great  measure  the  desired  effect,  and  dis 
cipline  once  more  reigned  throughout  the  camp. 

Lieut.  Col.  Schall  was  commander  of  the  post  at 
this  place,  and  having  his  quarters  a  considerable 
distance  from  where  the  regiment  reposed,  he  could 
not  be  held  accountable  for  their  conduct ;  yet  he 


392      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

did  all  that  lay  in  his  power,  by  example,  per 
suasion,  and  light  punishments,  to  stop  the  riotous 
behavior. 

Things  now  began  to  wear  a  gloomy  aspect,  as 
Gen.  Rosecrans,  who  was  operating  with  Burnside 
in  Tennessee,  met  with  a  serious  cheek  at  the  hands 
of  Bragg,  Longstreet,  and  Johnston.  The  garrison 
ing  duty  of  the  51st  P.  V.  began  to  be  a  little  agi 
tated,  and  its  days  were  numbered. 

While  at  this  post,  an  adventurous  Illinois  Zouave 
visited  the  regiment,  and  gave  an  exhibition  of  his 
superior  skill  in  handling  the  rifled  musket.  He 
drew  a  vast  crowd  around  him,  and  his  movements 
were  watched  with  evident  delight  and  much  interest. 
He  certainly  handled  the  musket  with  extraordinary 
skill,  showing  to  what  beauty  and  perfection  the 
manual  of  arms  can  be  brought,  through  intelligence, 
patience,  and  perseverance.  His  bayonet  exercise 
was  a  complete  triumph,  as  in  fact  every  movement 
was,  eliciting  praises  and  applause.  His  performance 
inspired  the  men  to  imitate  him,  and  for  months  we 
could  see  different  ones  attempting  to  reproduce  his 
various  movements — such  as  throwing  the  gun, 
with  fixed  bayonet,  high  up  in  the  air — making  it 
revolve  with  great  speed,  now  the  point  up,  now  the 
butt  of  the  gun  up,  and,  as  it  descended,  he  would 
catch  the  piece  by  the  point  of  the  bayonet  and  re 
volve  it  around  his  head  with  great  velocity,  passing 
it  under  his  arm,  over  his  shoulder,  then  round  his 
neck  and  under  the  other  arm,  etc.,  etc. 

But  none  were  ever  able  to  perform  any  of  these 
i'eats  with  the  same  dexterity  that  the  Zouave  did. 
Peter  Undercover,  of  Co.  C,  certainly  came  the 
nearest,  and  handled  the  gun  with  much  credit. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  393 

One  thing — like  all  other  exhibitions,  the  men 
were  called  on  to  pay  for  the  lesson,  which  they  did 
by  taking  up  a  collection  for  the  Zouave  which 
amounted  to  several  dollars.  After  pocketing  the 
money,  he  proceeded  to  another  camp,  where  his 
performances  were  likewise  hailed  with  delight. 
His  account  of  himself  stated  that  he  was  a  member 
of  an  Illinois  regiment,  had  been  wounded  several 
times,  captured  once,  and  was  now  on  his  parole, 
visiting  camps,  to  give  exhibitions  to  replenish  his 
portmonnaie,  and  to  show  that  any  one  can  become 
proficient  in  the  use  of  the  gun,  the  bayonet,  sword- 
bayonet,  and  the  sabre  ;  and  now  he  was  awaiting 
his  discharge  from  the  service. 

We  do  not  know  what  was  thought  of  the  truth 
fulness  of  his  story,  but  we,  our  individual  self, 
always  considered  him  in  no  other  light  than  a  rebel 
emissary,  spying  out  ichat  supplies  were  stored  at  Crab 
Orchard — for  at  this  time  the  stores  at  this  post  were 
immense,  consisting  of  ammunition,  arms,  rations, 
harness,  forage,  medicines,  etc.,  to  the  value  of  over 
two  millions  of  dollars,  and  were  destined  for  the 
use  of  the  Army  of  the  Ohio,  in  Tennessee. 


18 


394     HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 


CHAPTEE    VII. 

Mt.  Vemon — Starting  for  Kuoxville,  Tennessee — Correspond 
ence — History  of  a  Dog — Newspaper  extracts — London — 
Racing  on  the  march — Its  results — Post  Pitman — Laurel 
Bridge — Barboursville — Knobs  of  the  Log  Mountains — 
Horace  Mayuard — Parson  Brownlow — Crossing  the  Cum 
berland  Mountains — Cumberland  Gap — Descent  into  Ten 
nessee — Tazewell. 

WHILE  at  Crab  Orchard,  towards  the  close  of 
September,  Capt.  George  W.  Bisbing,  in  command 
of  the  regiment,  was  ordered  to  take  the  51st  and 
proceed  along  the  Cumberland  Gap  road  to  a  small 
town  called  Mount  Vernon,  about  fifteen  miles  from 
Crab  Orchard,  to  repair  the  road  in  that  vicinity,  as 
it  was  becoming  impassable  for  the  teams.  The 
regiment  was  absent  three  days,  when  it  returned  to 
camp  after  accomplishing  its  labors. 

On  the  evening  of  September  29th,  1863,  Lieut. 
Col.  Schall  received  orders  to  move  his  brigade  to 
Knoxville,  East  Tennessee,  and  to  be  ready  to  move 
at  daylight  next  morning,  with  eight  days'  rations 
in  haversacks  and  knapsacks,  and  with  sixty  rounds 
of  ammunition  to  each  man.  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  was 
under  the  impression  that  his  brigade  was  to  go  to 
Knoxville  merely  to  relieve  the  garrison  at  that 
post,  to  enable  them  to  go  to  the  front ;  but  a  couple 
of  days  after  the  regiment's  arrival  there,  dispelled 
all  such  fancies  from  his  rnind. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  October  2d,  1863,  the 
51st  P.  V.  struck  tents  and  prepared  for  its  march 
into  Tennessee  ;  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  in  command  of 
the  2d  brigade,  2d  division,  9th  Corps ;  Capt.  Wm. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  395 

Allebough,  Co.  C,  Act.  Assist.  Adj.  Gen.  on  Col. 
Schall's  staff';  Capt.  Geo.  W.  Bisbing,  Co.  I,  in  com 
mand  of  the  regiment ;  Capt.  Gaulin,  Co.  G,  Lieut. 
Wm.  F.  Thomas,  Co.  C,  Lieut.  Wrn.  W.  Owens, 
Co.  F,  were  all  the  line  officers  present  with  their 
companies,  the  other  seven  companies  were  under 
the  command  of  their  sergeants. 

Below  we  copy  the  Defender's  correspondent's 
(T.  H.  P  )  letter,  which  gives  the  march  in  full. 

BIG  SPRINGS,  (five  miles  S.  E.  of  Mt.  Vernon,  Ky.,) 

October  3d,  1863. 

Since  my  last  to  yon,  our  garrisoning  at  Crab  Orchard  lias 
been  knocked  flat  on  the  head  by  some  unaccountable  "  military 
necessity,"  and  we  are  on  a  pleasant  little  tour  (for  the  benefit 
of  Uncle  Sam's  health)  of  157  miles.  We  are  on  our  way  to 
Knoxville,  Tenn.,  and  have  some  16  or  17  miles  of  the  "job" 
done. 

On  Tuesday  evening  last  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  received  a  tele 
graphic  order  from  the  front  to  move  his  brigade  and  to  bring 
all  the  convalescents,  from  the  convalescent  camps,  along 
with  him,  and  to  report  at  Knoxville ;  we  were  to  start  at  6 
o'clock  A.  M.  on  Thursday,  October  1st,  but  as  teams  could  not 
be  got  ready  by  that  time  we  did  not  take  up  the  line  of  march 
until  yesterday  morning,  which  was  a  lucky  circumstance  for 
us  poor  devils,  for  it  had  rained  the  whole  day  and  night  before, 
one  of  those  light  rains  that  saturates  clothing  and  makes 
marching  very  painful  and  laborious.  After  we  left  Crab 
Orchard  the  column  halted  at  the  convalescent  camp  for  the 
convalescents  to  fall  in.  Capt.  Allebaugh,  Act.  Asst.  Adjt. 
Gen.  to  Lieut.  Col.  Schall,  had  attended  to  that  business,  and 
in  about  an  hour's  time  they  were  assigned  to  a  position  in 
the  centre,  the  35th  Mass.,  being  in  the  rear,  and  the  provost 
guard,  acting  as  rear  guard,  followed  in  the  rear  of  the  column 
to  keep  stragglers  with  their  respective  regiments.  The  march 
now  had  actually  began,  and  Capt.  Geo.  W.  Bisbing,  who  is  in 
command  of  the  regiment,  "  put  us  through  "  our  day's  march 
by  3  o'clock  p.  M.  ;  we  made  about  ten  miles  over  one  of  the 
roughest  roads  that  I  had  ever  seen  up  to  our  halt  of  yesterday. 
It  was  part  of  the  time  up  steep  rocky  hills  of  considerable 


396     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

length,  then  descending  those  hills  would  try  the  muscles  in 
the  boys'  bncks  at  every  step,  for  as  they  would  step  from  one 
rock  to  another  lower  down,  their  "knappies"  would  come 
against  them  with  a  surge  nearly  precipitating  them,  not  to 
bear  comparison  with  our  wagon  train  misfortune  ;  there  are 
eleven  wagons  with  us,  or  rather  started  with  us,  six  of  the 
teams  are  made  up  of  "  green  "  mules,  and  the  consequence  is, 
they  were  not  able  to  make  more  than  five  miles  yesterday,  one 
wagon  upsetting,  another  had  to  be  held  up  with  props  until  it 
got  unloaded,  and  the  remainder  stuck  fast  among  the  rocks 
and  mud.  (How  I  would  like  to  see  some  of  our  home 
tc;»msters  out  here  with  a  string  of  six  "green"  mules — 
climbing  these  "knobs,"  as  the  natives  call  them.)  So  the 
AV  agon  master,  with  Quartermaster  Stephens'  consent,  laid  over 
until  daylight  this  morning.  As  we  cannot  be  too  far  ahead  of 
our  wagon  train,  we  waited  until  after  10  A.  M.  to-day  for  them 
to  catch  up  ;  they  doing  so  we  again  took  up  the  line  of  march, 
the  35th  Mass,  leading  the  column — being  only  them  and  the 
51st  P.  V.,  having  lost  the  convalescents  yesterday,  they  not 
being  able  to  keep  up  with  us.  I  thought,  as  well  as  others, 
that  I  saw  some  rough  roads  yesterday,  but  the  part  traversed 
to  day  by  us  is  a  "  sweetener  "  for  both  troops  and  teams  ;  we 
made  about  six  or  seven  miles  to-day,  and  we  are  now  en 
camped  for  the  night  at  a  place  where  there  is  plenty  of  good 
water. 

The  teams  have  not  all  arrived  yet,  but  as  we  looked  up 
the  hill  at  whose  base  are  our  tents,  we  saw  some  coming 
down.  One  would  think  they  would  roll  over  the  mules 
that  are  hitched  to  the  wagons,  for  as  the  fore  wheels  roll  from 
one  declivity  to  another  the  wagon  appears  to  be  about  stand 
ing  on  its  front  end,  but  yet  they,  so  far,  have  got  down  safe. 
The  mules  to  those  wagons  are  wrell  broken,  and,  like  their 
drivers,  understand  their  work  and  do  it.  We  will  not  reach 
Knoxville  before  the  16th  or  17th  of  this  month,  we  have  to  move 
slow  for  we  are  to  have  two  batteries  with  us,  viz.,  Benjamin's 
six-gun  battery  of  twenty  pound  Parrotts,  and  Edwards's 
six-gun  battery  of  twelve  pound  Parrotts.  Our  march  must 
necessarily  be  slow  and  tedious,  for  as  the  road  to  the  moun 
tains  is  very  hilly  and  rocky,  the  artillery  and  wagons  will  not 
be  able  to  make  very  rapid  inarches  on  such  highways.  It  is 
seventy-eight  miles  from  here  to  Cumberland  Gap  and  it  is 
called  sixty-two  miles  from  the  Gap  to  Knoxville  ;  the  road 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      397 

over  the  mountains  is  very  rugged — from  the  base  to  summit  on 
this  side  is  seven  miles,  and  the  descent  on  the  other  side  is 
eight  miles.  Some  interesting  events,  I  think,  will  transpire 
in  crossing  the  mountains,  of  which  I  will  try  to  keep  the 
numerous  readers  of  the  Defender  apprised  of  at  as  early  an 
opportunity  as  I  can  get. 

We  expect  to  reach  a  post  called  London,  distant  about 
twenty-three  miles  from  here,  by  next  Monday,  the  5th,  at 
which  place  we  will  gather  into  our  column  another  regiment, 
the  llth  New  Hampshire,  which  belongs  to  the  2d  brigade. 
By  the  addition  of  that  regiment  we  will  make  quite  a  formid 
able  appearance. 

A  number  of  furloughs  were  granted  the  evening  before 
we  left  to  the  boys  of  the  different  companies  of  the  51st 
Pennsylvania,  and  the  recipients  of  them  may  consider  them 
selves  born  under  a  lucky  star,  in  getting  out  of  this  march. 

We  are  still  short  of  commissioned  officers  for  line  duty, 
Capt.  Gaulin,  Lieuts.  Owens  and  Thomas  are  all  we  can  find 
on  the  march  with  the  regiment.  More  anon, 

T.  H.  P. 

LONDON,  LAUREL  COUNTY,  KY., 

October  Wi,  1863. 

In  my  last,  I  gave  you  a  sketch  of  our  march  up  to  the  close 
of  the  3d  inst.  I  will  now  merely  give  the  remainder  of  this 
march  in  the  form  of  a  diary,  with  the  incidents  and  scenery 
that  I  think  will  interest  the  general  reader  of  the  Defender. 
On  Sunday  the  4th  inst.,  at  7^  A.  M.,  we  formed  in  line  and  were 
again  on  the  march,  and  in  a  few  moments  after  we  started 
we  crossed  the  Big  Rockcastle  river,  a  very  diminutive  stream 
to  boast  of  such  a  high-sounding  title ;  immediately  after  cross 
ing  the  above  rivulet,  we  ascended  a  hill  far  more  worthy  of 
being  called  a  mountain  than  the  above  creek  a  river.  At 
about  one-fourth  of  a  mile  from  the  base  of  this  hill  we  found 
quite  a  number  of  sutlers1  wagons,  as  well  as  others,  "stuck," 
for  at  this  point  of  the  road  it  was  at  an  angle  of  at  least  forty- 
five  degrees  perpendicular.  We  were  nearly  "  stuck  "  as  bad 
as  the  teams,  but  by  being  blessed  with  good  toe-nails  we  suc 
ceeded  in  gaining  the  summit  at  the  loss  of  considerable  breath. 
About  1  P.  M.  we  had  made  eleven  miles,  and  coming  to  the 
above  river  again,  Licut.-Col.  Schall  halted  the  brigade  until 
the  next  morning.  We  pitched  our  tents  and  made  ourselves 


398     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIKST   REGIMENT 

tolerably  comfortable  notwithstanding  that  night  was  very  cold 
and  frosty. 

At  7£  A.  M.  of  Monday,  the  5th,  we  again  were  on  our  march, 
crossed  the  above  river,  and  began  the  ascent  of  the  famous 
Wild  Cat  mountain,  made  famous,by  the  rebel  chieftain  Zolli- 
coffer  having  his  camp  and  fortifications  on  its  summit.  The 
tent  poles  of  his  camp  are  still  standing  erect,  but  show  little 
vestige  of  busy  camp  life.  While  descending  this  mountain  our 
worthy  friend  George  Bodey,  who  was  driving  an  ambulance 
and  sitting  in  front,  was  precipitated  headlong  out  of  the  wagon 
on  the  ground,  turning  a  somersault  and  alighting  on  his  back; 
it  was  gratifying  to  us  all  when  we  found  that  he  sustained  no 
injury  whatever.  All  along  this  road  the  rebellion  has  left  its 
desolating  mark.  The  citizens  having  at  the  outset  of  the  re 
bellion  deserted  their  once  happy  homes  and  either  linked  their 
fates  with  Jeff.  Davis,  or  gone  off  as  refugees  to  some  distant 
places  of  safety,  their  houses  are  now  occupied  by  loyal  refu 
gees  from  Eastern  Tennessee,  of  whom  the  majority  are  pre 
paring  to  return  to  their  homes  in  Tennessee.  It  is  an  old 
but  true  saying,  that  one  half  of  the  world  don't  know  how 
the  other  half  lives.  These  refugees  live  in  the  most  squalid 
poverty,  having  had  to  leave  all  their  property  behind  them  and 
seek  an  asylum  in  among  these  mountains  where  there  is 
little  or  no  vegetation  whatever,  their  sufferings  are  beyond 
description. 

WThen  our  forces  drove  Bragg  out  this  road  through  the  Gap, 
the  contending  forces  left  their  marks  upon  the  trees  and  in  the 
roads,  for  some  of  the  trees  bear  the  unmistakable  sign  of  the 
determination  of  both  forces  ;  some  of  the  trees  are  perforated 
witli  as  many  as  thirty  balls,  some  having  their  tops  cut  off  by 
a  shell  or  cannon  shot,  and  at  short  distances  apart.  Bragg 
felled  large  trees  across  the  roads  to  impede  the  pursuing  artil 
lery  of  Buell,  and  to  blockade  the  roads  to  prevent  Buell  from 
pressing  his  rear  too  severely.  I  have  digressed  a  little  but  I 
will  return  to  our  march  first  and  the  incidents  afterwards. 

We  made  a  rapid  march  this  day  of  eight  miles  in  three 
hours,  for  by  half-past  11  o'clock  A.  M.  we  had  reached  the  en 
campment  of  the  llth  N.  H.  of  our  brigade,  which  has  been 
out  here  nearly  four  weeks,  this  camp  is  in  Laurel  county,  Ky., 
near  London.  Just  before  we  reached  this  camp  we  passed  a 
party  of  rebel  prisoners  who  were  on  their  way  back  to  Lex 
ington,  Ky.,  they  were  as  rough  a  looking  set  of  bipeds  as  I 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  399 

ever  saw.  We  are  now  at  this  writing,  encamped  here  await 
ing  the  arrival  of  the  batteries  of  which  I  made  mention  in  my 
last  letter  that  is  to  accompany  us  to  Knoxville. 

On  Tuesday  the  6th  in  consequence  of  the  inability  of  pro 
curing  supplies  sufficient  to  feed  us,  our  daily  rations  were  to 
be  considerably  reduced,  but  the  reduction  has  proved  to  be  of 
little  or  no  loss  to  us,  although  some  saving  to  the  Government 
stores,  for  the  surrounding  mountains  abound  in  a  species  of 
game  that  our  boys  have  contrived  to  capture  and  apply  to 
their  own  behoof  and  use  only,  the  game  (commonly  called 
hogs  and  sheep,)  roams  about  here  apparently  without  any 
owners,  until  after  shot,  then  an  owner  of  mushroon  order 
springs  up  as  the  case  may  be,  but  generally  with  the  success 
of  getting  off  himself  without  being  harmed,  for  the  boys  hold 
on  to  their  property  by  that  wholesome  law,  the  right  of  dis 
covery. 

Wednesday  7th.  This  was  a  rainy  day  and  had  rained  all 
night,  making  everything  disagreeable  and  uncomfortable  in 
camp.  We  are  still  using  the  little  shelter  tents,  but  they  afford 
but  a  very  poor  protection  against  a  dashing  rain. 

Thursday  8th  cleared  off  cold,  a  large  train  of  wagons  camped 
here  to-day,  having  just  come  in  from  Knoxville,  they  left  on 
the  1st  inst.,  and  report  everything  going  on  as  well  as  could 
be  wished  for  in  front,  excepting  the  wrhole  army  out  here  are 
upon  less  than  half  rations.  They  report  plenty  of  hogs  be 
tween  here  and  Knoxville,  but  unfit  for  use,  unless  we  carry 
corn  along  to  feed  them  a  little,  and  also  carry  a  little  fat  to 
fry  them  in. 

Friday  9th.  The  wagon  train  that  came  in  yesterday  is  load 
ing  up  with  bituminous  coal  to  be  delivered  at  Crab  Orchard. 

I  understand  that  there  are  immense  fields  of  bituminous 
coal  in  this  region.  There  ig  ample  mineral  wealth  in  this  part 
of  Kentucky  to  induce  capitalists  to  invest  largely  in  develop 
ing  the  hidden  treasures  that  are  known  to  exist  here,  but  the 
want  of  railroad  to  some  market  has  deterred  the  formation  of  a 
company  or  corporation  from  being  organized.  It  wants  a  few 
enterprising  Pennsylvanians  out  here  to  show  them  how  for 
tunes  are  made. 

More  anon,  T.  P.  H. 

The  next  letter  of  T.  H.  P.  is  dated  from  Knox 
ville,  Oct.  21st,  1863,  as  follows : 


400      HISTOKY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

KNOXVILLE,  TENNESSEE, 
Oct.  21st,  1863. 

Since  writing  my  last  we  have  reached  this  city  and  I  will 
now  endeavor  to  give  a  graphic  account  of  onr  very  toilsome 
march.  Just  as  I  closed  my  last  letter  on  Friday,  the  9th  inst., 
the  two  batteries  that  we  had  been  waiting  several  days  for, 
arrived  and  orders  were  issued  to  be  ready  to  break  camp  and 
leave  at  noon  of  the  next  day,  Saturday,  10th.  According  to 
orders  we  left  at  the  designated  time,  and  with  the  85th  INI  ass. 
and  the  two  batteries  (regulars)  we  made  quite  a  column.  We 
had  to  leave  the  llth  N.  H.  at  London  to  await  the  return  of  a 
supply  train,  which  had  to  go  back  to  Crab  Orchard  for  an 
additional  supply  of  rations,  for  the  purpose  of  acting  as  a  guard 
to  it  on  its  way  hither.  We  made  ten  miles  this  day  and 
camped  for  the  night  near  Laurel  Bridge,  in  Laurel  county. 
Here  we  found  a  few  hogs  running  in  apparently  a  wild  state 
and  we  appropriated  them  to  our  use  for  the  inner  man. 

On  Sunday,  llth,  we  again  broke  camp  and  left  at  7 
o'clock  A.  M.  This  day  we  made  nineteen  miles  over  a  very 
mountainous  road,  at  noon  we  halted  at  a  roadside  inn  for  half 
an  hour,  here  we  had  a  good  rest.  We  passed  through  the 
town  of  Barboursville  and  camped  about  5  p.  M.,  on  the  banks 
of  that  beautiful  stream,  the  Cumberland  river.  On  Monday, 
12th,  we  left  camp  at  7|  A.  M.,  and  made  fourteen  miles,  forded 
a  river  and  camped  in  among  the  mountains  at  8  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon.  On  Tuesday,  13th,  left  the  ford  at  8  o'clock  fore 
noon,  crossed  three  very  high  and  steep  mountains,  and  arrived 
at  Cumberland  Gap  at  2  P.  M.,  in  a  drenching  rain  ;  we  made 
fourteen  miles  this  day  and  then  camped.  On  Wednesday,  14th, 
we  again  started  at  8  o'clock  A.  M.,  we  crossed  Cumberland 
Mountains  at  the  Gap,  where  Kentucky,  Virginia,  and  Tennes 
see  joins.  The  point  of  State  limits  is  marked  by  a  large  square 
corner  stone  cut  out  and  put  up  for  that  purpose.  It  stands  at 
the  top  of  the  mountain,  on  one  side  of  the  road  crossing  the 
mountain.  We  made  fifteen  miles  this  day  and  camped  at  the 
town  of  Tazewell,  Tenn.  Rained  all  day. 

Thursday,  15th.  This  day  we  had  to  lay  over  for  supplies 
to  arrive,  our  rations  having  run  out,  and  also  the  teams  being 
entirely  out  of  forage,  and  had  to  go  out  a  foraging  to  enable 
them  to  subsist  on  forage  obtained  along  the  line  of  march. 
The  train  having  our  supplies  arrived  at  4  p.  M.  Friday,  16th, 
left  Tazewell  at  9  A.  M.  This  day  we  made  thirteen  miles  and 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  401 

forded  the  Clinch  river,  which  was  a  most  unpleasant  duty  I 
assure  you,  for  the  water  was  very  deep  and  icy  cold,  and  the 
river  very  wide  with  a  swift  current.  On  Saturday,  17th,  left 
the  ford  this  morning  at  8  o'clock,  passed  through  Maynards- 
ville,  County-town  of  Union  county,  made  fourteen  miles  this 
day,  and  camped  twenty-one  miles  from  Knoxville.  The  first 
seven  miles  of  this  day's  march  was  on  a  road  that  had  a  creek 
of  water  running  over  the  bed  of  the  road  for  the  whole  seven 
miles.  Sunday,  18th,  rained  very  hard  all  day,  mud  knee  deep 
and  the  marching  of  the  most  disagreeable  character,  however, 
we  made  seventeen  miles  and  camped  about  5  p.  M.,  within 
four  miles  of  Knoxville.  Just  as  we  were  pitching  our  tents 
for  the  night  we  were  surprised  to  see  our  beloved  major,  Wm. 
J.  Bolton,  Capt.  L.  S.  Hart,  and  W.  P.  Schall  come  riding 
into  camp,  having  just  returned  from  home.  They  were 
greeted  with  many  a  hearty  shake  of  the  hands  and  welcomes, 
a  crowd  soon  gathered  around  them  to  hear  the  news  of  the 
election  which  evidently  was  highly  satisfactory  to  almost 
every  soldier.  While  here  we  received  a  mail,  being  the  first 
mail  received  since  leaving  Crab  Orchard.  It  was  a  mam 
moth  one,  reminding  the  boys  of  the  large  mails  we  used  to 
receive  after  we  left  Camp  Curtin  in  1801.  On  Monday,  19th, 
we  left  camp  at  9  A.  M.,  and  arrived  here  at  Knoxville  at  half- 
past  10  A.  M.,  and  went  into  camp  where  we  now  are. 

Last  night  about  8  o'clock  we  received  orders  to  march  again 
this  morning  at  6  o'clock,  with  three  days'  rations  and  forty 
rounds  of  ammunition  to  each  man.  Per  order,  we  were  nearly 
ready  to  start  this  morning,  when  the  order  was  countermanded, 
to  the  gratification  of  all  the  troops,  and  especially  to  us,  as  we 
had  just  came  off'  a  long,  wearisome  march,  and  man}*"  of  the 
boys  are  entirely  barefooted.  One  man  in  Co.  I  inarched  from 
eighty  to  ninety  miles,  over  rocky  roads,  without  anything  on 
his  feet,  and  if  we  have  to  go  on  another  march  before  the 
clothing  arrives,  there  will  be  quite  a  number  who  will  have  to 
trudge  it  barefooted.  There  is  no  blame  to  be  attached  to  any 
one  for  the  misfortune,  as  it  is  one  of  those  unavoidable  mis 
haps.  When  we  left  Crab  Orchard,  every  man  was  well  shod, 
many  of  them  having  two  pairs  of  shoes  when  we  started  ;  but 
it  rained  nearly  every  day,  and  between  the  gravel  in  the  mud 
and  the  sharp  pointed  rocks  in  the  roads,  with  upwards  of  thirty 
mountains  to  climb,  it  cut  out  shoe  leather  nearly  as  fast  as  if 
held  on  a  grindstone.  The  injury  done  to  shoes  in  climbing  so 

18* 


402      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

many  mountains  is  plainly  visible  in  the  toes  of  the  shoes ;  while 
the  heels  and  balls  of  the  shoes  are  good  and  very  little  worn, 
the  toes  are  cut  off  almost  square  for  an  inch  and  a  half  back. 
The  cause  is  produced  by  the  men  carrying  heavy  knapsacks 
and  other  articles,  that  in  climbing  a  mountain  causes  them  to 
lean  very  much  forward,  thereby  throwing  all  their  weight  on 
the  toe  of  the  shoes.  Our  regiment  is  in  first-rate  health,  owing 
no  doubt  to  having  a  plentiful  supply  of  the  best  of  water  while 
on  the  march.  The  country  abounds  in  great  quantities  of  apples, 
and  all  along  the  line  of  march  the  trees  were  loaded  down 
with  this  delicious  fruit  in  every  variety.  Yesterday  I  took  a 
stroll  through  the  city  of  Knoxville  ;  it  is  and  has  been  a  most 
enterprising  city.  In  time  of  peace  it  boasted  of  a  population  of 
7, 000  white  inhabitants.  There  are  twelve  or  fourteen  churches, 
several  banks,  schools,  machine  shops,  and  foundries,  several 
furnaces  for  smelting  iron,  and  various  other  works  that  employ 
a  large  number  of  hands.  It  is  the  most  beautiful  city  that  I 
have  seen  in  any  of  the  Southern  States.  Parson  Brownlow  is 
here,  and  about  starting  his  paper  again.  He  passed  us  while 
crossing  the  Cumberland  mountains  at  the  Gap,  having,  he  said, 
a  new  font  of  type  in  his  carriage  at  the  time.  He  is  now  very 
busy  in  pointing  out  the  more  rabid  secessionists  to  Gen.  Burn- 
side,  who  is  taking  care  of  them. 

More  anon,  T.  H.  P. 


While  the  regiment  lay  at  Winchester,  Ky.,  Capt. 
E.  Schall,  of  Co.  D,  resigned  his  commission  and 
went  home.  He  took  with  him  a  small  black  dog, 
named  "  General."  This  dog  had  been  in  the  regi 
ment  before  its  organization  at  Camp  Curtin.  When 
brought  there,  he  was  under  four  weeks  of  age ;  as 
he  got  older,  he  grew  in  size  and  in  the  affections 
of  the  men.  He  followed  the  fortunes  of  the  51st 
P.  V.  from  that  time  up  to  the  resignation  of  his 
master,  in  May,  1863.  "General"  was  with  the 
regiment  at  the  taking  of  Roanoke  Island,  Newbern, 
Camden,  second  Bull  Run,  Chantilly,  South  Moun 
tain,  Antietam,  Sulphur  Springs,  Fredericksburg, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      403 

and  in  all  the  marches  from  Camp  Curtin  to  Win 
chester,  Ky.  When  he  returned  to  Norristown,  Pa., 
it  was  only  to  enjoy  life  a  few  short  months.  A 
notice  of  his  death,  which  appeared  in  one  of  the 
papers  of  that  town,  of  October  20th,  1863,  says : 

"DEAD. — The  dog 'General'  departed  last  night  from  this 
world.  Quite  a  history  is  connected  with  his  life.  He  joined 
the  51st  regiment  at  Harrisburg,  (or  we  might  say  was  impressed 
into  the  service  by  'Buglum'  Taylor,)  he  followed  the  for 
tunes  of  the  regiment  through  North  Carolina,  Virginia,  Mary 
land,  and  Kentucky  ;  he  passed  safely  through  all  the  battles 
fought  by  that  regiment ;  he  was  the  pet  of  the  regiment  as  well 
as  of  the  2d  brigade.  It  is  supposed  that  he  was  poisoned,  inas 
much  as  no  mark  could  be  found  on  his  body.  It  was  evidently 
the  spite  work  of  some  malicious  person.  His  remains  were 
placed  in  a  neat  little  box,  and  buried  in  the  corner  of  a  yard. 
A  small  marble  stone,  with  suitable  inscriptions,  marks  his 
resting  place." 

Another  dog  followed  in  the  fortunes  of  the  51st  P.  V.,  and 
made  quite  a  record  for  himself.  He  outdid  his  regiment  in  the 
number  of  his  battles  ;  in  his  long  career  in  the  regiment  and 
the  large  number  of  his  fights  he  was  never  known  to  have 
been  whipped,  although  attacked  sometimes  by  four  or  five 
dogs,  none  of  them  as  small  as  himself.  His  owner  took  him 
home,  as  he  was  being  worn  out  with  age,  hard  fighting,  and 
the  loss  of  his  teeth.  All  will  remember  "Tinker"  and  his 
master,  Sergt.  John  McNulty,  of  Co.  D. 

The  51st  P.  Y.  left  Crab  Orchard  to  reinforce  the 
army  already  in  East  Tennessee,  and  right  lustily  did 
the  column  push  forward  to  its  duty  ;  but  its  assist 
ance  was  not  needed  on  its  arrival,  as  the  following 
report  of  Gen.  Burnside  to  Gen.  Halleck  will  ex 
plain  : 

"KNOXVILLE,  TENN.,  Oct.  llth. 
"Major  General  H.  W.  Halleck,  General-in-Chief,  Washington: 

' '  On  the  8th  inst.  the  enemy  held  down  as  far  as  Blue  Springs, 
and  a  cavalry  brigade  of  ours  held  Bull's  Gap,  supported  by  a 
small  body  of  infantry  at  Morristown. 

14 1  accordingly  despatched  a  brigade  of  cavalry  around  by 
Rogersville  to  intercept  the  enemy's  retreat,  and  with  a  con 
siderable  body  of  infantry  and  artillery  moved  to  Bull's  Gap. 


404      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY  FIRST   KEGIMENT 

44  On  Saturday,  the  lOtli  instant,  I  advanced  a  cavalry  bri 
gade  to  Blue  Springs,  where  they  found  the  enemy  strongly 
posted  and  offering  a  stubborn  resistance. 

44  Skirmishing  continued  until  about  5  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
when  I  sent  in  a  division  of  infantry,  who  charged  and  cleared 
the  woods,  gallantly  driving  the  enemy  in  confusion  until  dark. 

44  During  the  night  the  enemy  retreated  precipitately,  leaving 
their  dead  on  the  field,  and  most  of  their  wounded  in  our  hands. 

"His  advance  is  now  ten  miles  beyond  Bristol. 

44 Our  loss  at  Blue  Springs  and  in  the  pursuit  was  about  one 
hundred  killed  and  wounded. 

"  The  enemy's  loss  was  considerably  greater. 

44  About  one  hundred  and  fifty  prisoners  were  taken. 

44  A.  E.  BURNSIDE,  Major  General." 

About  the  middle  of  October,  1868,  Gen.  Kose- 
crans  was  relieved  of  the  command  of  the  "  Army  of 
the  Cumberland"  by  Gen.  Grant;  this  did  not  mate 
rially  affect  the  several  regiments  in  the  command, 
more  than  to  move  them  with  greater  celerity  and  at 
an  earlier  period.  The  2d  brigade,  2d  division,  9th 
Army  Corps,  after  reaching  Tazewell,  Tcim.,  pushed 
on  with  perseverance  to  the  end  of  its  march,  not  be 
cause  its  services  were  any  more  urgently  needed,  but 
the  change  in  commanders  in  chief  caused  the  army 
to  be  more  centralized  than  it  had  been  previously. 

A  dispatch  to  the  ft  Associated  Press,"  announcing 
the  event,  we  give  below  : 


.  "GEN.  ROSECRANS  SUPERSEDED. — A  dispatch,  received  at 
one  o'clock  this  morning  from  Louisville,  announces  the  super 
sedence  of  Gen.  Roseerans  by  Gen.  Grant,  who  assumes  the 
command  of  the  armies  of  the  Cumberland,  and  Ohio,  and 
Kentucky,  with  ample  powers.  Gen.  Grant  left  for  Nashville, 
which  will  probably  be  his  headquarters,  yesterday  morning,  to 
assume  the  direction  of  affairs  at  Chattanooga.  Maj.  Gen. 
Thomas,  the  4t  obstinate  fighter"  at  Chickamauga,  takes  com 
mand  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  and  Gen.  Rosecrans  is 
ordered  to  report  at  Cincinnati,  by  letter  to  the  Adjutant-Gen 
eral  at  Washington.  Gens.  Garfield  and  Steadman,  of  Rose 
crans'  staff,  arrived  at  Louisville  last  night." 

By  another  dispatch  from  the  same  source,  it  shows 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      405 

that  Gen.  Grant  kept  moving  himself,  which  meant 
that  he  intended  all  others  to  do  the  same  thing,  the 
dispatch  bearing  the  same  date  as  the  last  one,  Octo 
ber  15,  1863: 

"  VICKSBUHG  AFFAIRS. — Gen.  McPherson,  since  the  depar 
ture  of  Gen.  Grant,  remains  in  command  of  the  Union  forces 
south  of  the  Arkansas  river  down  to  Gen.  Crocker's  line  at 
Natchez.  Gen.  Logan  is  the  military  governor  of  Yicksburg. 
Joe  Johnston  is  in  command  of  all  the  rebel  troops  in  the 
vicinity,  and  is  using  every  effort  to  raise  a  large  army  by 
conscripting  every  man  who  comes  in  his  reach." 

The  dispatch  not  only  speaks  of  Gen.  Grant's  early 
departure  from  Yicksburg,  but  gave  the  men  of  the 
51st  P.  Y.  an  idea  how  things  were  going  on  in  the 
department  where  they  had  fought  and  suffered  so 
much.  But,  as  we  are  again  digressing,  we  will  re 
turn  to  the  inarch. 

The  march  from  Crab  Orchard  to  London  (Post 
Pitman)  was  accomplished  by  the  6th;  the  last  eight 
or  nine  miles  were  done  in  a  hurry,  inasmuch  as  the 
35th  Mass,  was  secretly  racing  with  the  51st  P.  Y., 
and  thinking  they  i^being  raw  troops)  could  march 
as  fast  and  long  as  older  disciplined  ones.  But,  to 
their  discredit  (they  being  in  the  advance),  in  turning 
an  angle  in  the  road,  or  when  hidden  by  a  dense 
woods  at  almost  every  bend,  they  would  double  quick 
along  the  road,  until  the  advance  of  the  51st  P.  Y. 
would  come  in  view  of  their  rear,  when  they  would 
assume  the  route  step,  as  if  they  had  been  going  at 
that  ordinary  speed  all  the  time.  The  men  of  the 
51st  caught  the  idea  of  what  the  35th  Mass,  were 
doing,  and  they  put  on  a  little  more  steam,  with  the 
approbation  of  the  regimental  commander,  Capt. 
Bisbing.  In  fact,  he  entered  into  the  race  as  heartily 
as  the  men,  and  up  to  within  three  miles  of  the  last 


406     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIEST   REGIMENT 

of  that  day's  marcb,  the  51st  P.  V.  merely  held  their 
own,  pretending  to  be  ignorant  of  the  object  of  the 
35th  Mass.  ;  but  on  the  starting  in  on  the  last  three 
miles,  the  two  regiments  being  nearly  a  mile  apart, 
the  51st  resolved  to  soon  close  up  that  gap.  By  the 
time  another  one  and  a  half  miles  were  done,  the  51st 
were  at  their  heels,  hallooing  and  yelping  like  so 
many  hounds  after  a  fox,  for  them  to  "  push  on,"  '  get 
out  of  the  way,"  &c. ;  but  they  were  nearly  jaded  out 
by  their  exertions,  and  d— d  one  another  for  making 
fools  of  themselves  and  being  overdone.  Nearly 
one-half  of  their  regiment  ufell  out,"  while  the  other 
part,  more  persevering,  seemed  determined  to  get 
to  their  camp  ground  before  the  51st  could  to 
theirs;  but  the  51st  P.  V.,  followed  by  the  51st  N. 
Y.,  pushed  on  through  and  around  the  ranks  of  the 
35th,  and  were  on  their  camp  ground  with  "  guns 
stacked,"  before  the  35th  "  filed  in  "  from  the  road. 
This  race  satisfied  the  35th  that  green  troops  could 
neither  march  faster  nor  longer  than  veterans;  and 
they  never  attempted  to  race  again,  either  secretly 
or  openly. 

After  the  51st  P.  V.  got  into  camp  each  man  began 
to  "  take  account  of  stock,"  in  sore  feet,  blisters,  sore 
nails,  rubbed  heels,  &c.,  and  found  that  they  were 
rich,  indeed,  but  not  quite  as  flush  as  their  oppon 
ents,  the  35th  were,  for  every  step  they  took  through 
camp  was  performed  in  the  most  delicate  style,  some 
thing  similar  to  a  person  walking  on  thorns. 

This  camp  was  in  a  woods  about  one  hundred 
yards  to  the  left  of  the  road,  going  towards  the  "Gap," 
and  it  was  as  merry  a  camp  as  the  regiment  was 
ever  in.  A  sutler,  belonging  to  Post  Pitman,  had  a 
goodly  supply  of  "  Bourbon,"  and  it  wasn't  long  be- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  407 

fore  the  men  had  a  full  sufficiency,  by  paying  $2.50 
per  bottle  of  less  than  a  pint.  The  scene  in  camp 
that  night  was  ridiculous.  Lieut.-Col.  Schall,  the 
brigade  commander,  had  his  quarters  a  short  dis 
tance  off',  but  the  noise  and  disorderly  conduct  of  a 
certain  few  was  plainly  heard  by  him,  and  he  visited 
the  camp  in  person  to  quell  the  disturbance.  Seven 
of  the  companies  being  under  the  command  of  ser 
geants,  little  heed  was  paid  by  the  men  to  their 
threats  or  orders,  and  what  few  line  officers  were 
present,  although  they  endeavored  to  restore  order, 
seemed  to  enjoy  the  sport  as  much  as  any  of  the 
men.  As  soon  as  they  restored  quiet  in  one  place, 
and  got  to  where  another  noisy  party  was,  the  tu 
mult  would  break  out  where  they  had  just  left ;  thus 
it  kept  them  on  the  go,  until  they  found  their  efforts 
were  fruitless,  and  gave  it  up,  as  no  man  was  to  be 
found,  on  their  appearance,  who  could  or  would  tell 
who  the  boisterous  ones  were  ;  and  another  thing, 
the  men  knew  their  officers  liked  fun,  and  they  sup 
plied  them  with  it  freely;  but  when  Col.  Schall 
came  and  complained,  and  appealed  to  their  better 
judgment,  they  instantly  ceased  their  sport,  not 
through  fear,  but  knowing  him  to  be  a  strictly  pious 
man,  and  that  such  conduct  wounded  his  feelings, 
they,  out  of  respect  and  reverence  for  him,  brought 
their  revelry  to  an  end  for  the  night. 

Next  morning,  an  order  was  issued  by  Col.  Schall 
against  shooting  cattle,  hogs,  or  sheep  while  lying 
there  ;  but,  with  all  their  respect  and  reverence  for 
him,  they  could  not  brook  that  order,  for  their  rations 
were  short,  and  they  would  not  starve  to  please  the 
natives  of  that  region,  and  before  night  nearly  every 
man  was  frying  a  nice  piece  of  fresh  pork  or  mutton. 


408     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

On  the  9th  the  regiment  received  orders  to  be 
ready  to  leave  by  noon,  of  the  10th.  Their  long 
stay  at  this  place  was  occasioned  by  having  to  take 
two  very  heavy  batteries  along  with  them,  which 
could  not  be  got  ready  for  the  march  any  sooner ; 
one  of  which  was  Benjamin's  celebrated  New  York 
brass  battery  of  six  twenty-pounder  Parrott  guns; 
the  other,  Edwards'  (regulars)  six  gun  battery,  of 
twelve-pounders,  Parrotts. 

At  10  A.  M.  of  Saturday,  October  10th,  the  regi 
ment  struck  tents  and  packed  knapsacks  prepara 
tory  to  leaving  Post  Pitman,  and  precisely  at  12  M.  it 
started  off  towards  Laurel  Bridge,  where  it  arrived  a 
little  before  dark,  and  bivouacked  for  the  night. 
Soon  after  getting  into  quarters,  the  men  began 
hunting  up  fresh  meat  by  shooting  a  few  pigs  and 
sheep,  much  to  the  indignation  of  the  citizens  of  the 
neighborhood.  A  whiskey  distillery  was  found  at 
this  place,  but  every  thing  had  been  removed  out  of 
sight  of  the  Yankees.  The  proprietor  had  sixty 
barrels  of  liquor  stored  away  in  the  cellar  of  his 
large  mansion,  but  it  was  unknown  to  the  brigade, 
with  the  exception  of  two  or  three  men  whom  an  old 
colored  man  had  informed  that  he  had  helped  to  put 
it  there  only  a  few  days  before.  The  next  was  a 
hard  day's  march,  being  over  a  rugged  and  moun 
tainous  road,  making  about  twenty  miles.  At  noon, 
the  regiment  halted  for  an  hour  and  a-half  at  a  pub 
lic  house  that  stood  on  the  right  side  of  the  road ; 
the  hotel  was  closed,  but  the  officers  of  the  different 
commands  entered  the  rear  of  the  house,  and  ob 
tained  their  dinner,  while  the  men  were  contriving 
every  scheme  imaginable  to  obtain  a  little  whiskey, 
but  with  poor  success.  There  was  plenty  of  it,  but 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      409 

it  could  not  be  found,  as  the  knowing  ones  kept  out 
of  the  way.  After  the  officers  had  done  their  din 
ners,  and  showed  the  men  a  chance  of  getting  theirs, 
also  a  good  rest,  the  regiment  again  started  off,  and 
passed,  at  5  P.  M.,  through  Barboursville,  situated 
on  the  Cumberland  river,  and,  after  fording  it,  en 
camped  about  one  and  a-half  miles  from  the  town, 
on  the  bank  of  the  river,  in  a  narrow  strip  of  woods 
on  the  right  of  the  road,  and  about  three  hundred 
yards  from  it,  the  artillery  parking  between  the 
regiment's  camp  and  the  road.  The  men  belonging 
to  the  infantry  viewed  with  envy  the  plentiful  sup 
ply  of  rations  which  the  batterymen  had,  while  the 
former  had  only  a  cracker  and  a  cup  of  coffee  for 
their  supper.  Several  privates  belonging  to  the 
51st  P.  V.  were  detailed  to  serve  in  Benjamin's  bat 
tery,  to  fill  vacancies  occasioned  by  deaths  and  dis 
charges.  These  men  served  with  Benjamin  all 
through  the  Tennessee  campaign,  and  with  marked 
distinction.  One  of  whom,  John  Dunn,  of  Co.  D, 
deserves  especial  mention.  One  of  his  great  feats 
will  be  mentioned  in  the  attack  on  Fort  Sanders 
during  the  siege  of  Knoxville,  which  we  will  men 
tion  hereafter. 

The  next  morning  the  regiment  broke  camp,  left 
the  Cumberland,  made  fourteen  miles  that  day,  and 
reforded  the  same  river  higher  up.  The  bed  of  this 
stream  was  rocky;. the  submerged  stones  were  as 
slippery  as  ice,  and  not  a  few  who  were  trying  to 
keep  themselves  dry  by  stepping  from  one  stone  to 
another  would  slip  and  get  a  ducking  in  the  icy  cold 
water  that  made  them  feel  disagreeable  for  some 
time  thereafter.  After  fording  the  river,  the  regi 
ment  filed  to  the  left  of  the  road,  passed  an  old 


410      HISTORY   OF  THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

building,  climbed  a  steep  acclivity,  and  went  into 
camp  on  this  high  hill  at  about  3J-  P.  M.,  which  was 
another  act  of  kindness  of  the  brigade  commander, 
Lieut.-Col.  Schall,  and  it  was  appreciated  by  the 
whole  brigade,  for  it  gave  all  the  men  who  were 
dripping  and  soaked  to  the  skin  from  fording,  a 
chance  to  dry  their  clothing  and  their  persons,  and 
by  the  huge  fires  they  kindled  their  chattering  teeth 
and  shivering  limbs  soon  resumed  their  natural  feel 
ings  of  warmth. 

The  regiment  left  this  place  next  morning,  at  8 
o'clock,  (Tuesday,  13th,)  filed  down  the  hill  to  the 
road  where  the  column  was  forming,  and  immediately 
started  for  the  "Gap,"  in  a  cold,  drizzling  rain, 
which,  by  noon,  came  down  in  torrents,  making  the 
marching  most  abominable,  and  what  added  to  the 
painful  labor  was  the  crossing  of  the  three  very  high 
and  rocky  "knobs"  of  the  Log  Mountains,  which 
appeared  to  worry  the  men  far  more  than  crossing 
the  Cumberland  Mountains,  at  the  Gap ;  their  shoes 
were  filled  with  mud  and  gravel ;  their  clothing 
heavy,  and  draggling  with  rain  ;  their  scanty  rations 
unfit  to  eat  by  being  soaked  in  rain  water,  and  all 
mashed  up  in  their  haversacks,  and  themselves  shiv 
ering  with  the  cold.  By  2  P.  M.  they  reached  the 
base  of  the  Cumberland  Mountains,  filed  to  the  right 
of  the  road,  and  camped  in  a  meadow  about  three 
miles  from  where  the  road  began  its  ascent  to  the 
Gap.  It  did  not  appear  to  be  four  hundred  yards  off', 
from  the  fact  that  the  great  height  of  this  mountain 
makes  it  seem  to  be  close,  when,  in  reality,  it  is  at 
a  great  distance.  After  getting  into  camp,  another 
difficulty  arose  in  the  shape  of  want  of  fuel,  it  being 
very  scarce  owing  to  the  long  occupation  of  that 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      411 

vicinity  by  the  rebel  army  previous  to  the  surrender 
of  the  Gap,  and  to  the  Union  army  after  getting 
possession  of  it.  What  little  could  be  found  was  so 
water-soaked  as  to  make  ignition  nearly  impossible, 
but  before  dark,  camp-fires  were  all  ablaze.  While 
some  were  making  the  fires,  others  were  obliged  to 
forage  for  their  supper.  Some  few  were  a  little  suc 
cessful,  but  only  a  little,  while  the  majority  had  to 
make  their  supper  entirely  of  stewed  apples  and 
coffee.  The  apples  were  scrubby  things,  and  we  had 
to  go  back  three  miles  to  get  them.  This  was  a 
cheerless  day  and  night  to  nearly  all  the  officers  and 
men,  and  its  influence  was  keenly  felt  next  morning 
in  preparing  the  morning  meal.  Although  it  was 
intended  to  start  early,  yet  the  rations  were  so  short 
that  Col.  Schall  deemed  it  more  prudent  to  show  the 
men  a  chance  of  foraging  an  hour  or  two  for  their 
breakfast,  which  they  did  with  a  hearty  good  will, 
but  with  poor  success.  He  being  unable  to  delay 
longer  the  starting,  at  8  A.  M.  the  column  was  under 
way,  with  empty  stomachs  and  empty  haversacks,  to 
cross  the  Cumberland  Mountains  at  the  Gap. 

While  at  a  halt,  about  two  miles  from  the  summit, 
the  Hon.  Horace  Maynard,  U.  S.  Representative 
from  Tennessee,  and  a  champion  of  the  Union,  passed 
through  the  regiment,  and  proceeded  up  the  road  to 
the  Gap.  When  about  half-way  up,  (being  on  foot,) 
he  stopped  and  faced  the  halted  troops,  evidently 
wondering  if  there  was  strength  enough  in  that  little 
band  of  heroes,  which  lay  at  his  feet,  to  insure  a  safe 
entrance  for  him  back  to  his  own  beloved  State 
which  had  so  recently  driven  him  away,  because  he 
had  dared  to  stand  up  so  nobly,  with  his  compeer, 
Parson  Brownlow,  in  defence  of  the  Union,  and 


412      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

against  secession.  No  doubt  he  felt  willing  to  risk 
it,  for  after  viewing  the  troops  for  ten  or  fifteen 
minutes,  he  resumed  his  way,  and  we  lost  sight  of 
him  until  he  got  to  Knoxville. 

Parson  Wm.  Gr.  Brownlow  next  came  along,  in  a 
two-horse  carriage,  accompanied  by  that  intrepid 
daughter  who  had  dared  to  shoot  down  a  rebel  ser 
geant  on  her  father's  door-step,  while  attempting  to 
force  his  way  into  the  house  for  the  purpose  of 
arresting  the  Parson.  He  seemed  dejected  at  his 
prospects,  for  he,  too,  like  his  friend  Maynard,  was 
venturing  back  to  the  city  of  Knoxville,  where 
the  "  secesh  "  citizens  had  twice  put  the  rope  around 
his  neck  to  force  him  to  renounce  his  Union  senti 
ments,  and  to  link  his  fortune  with  theirs ;  but  even 
with  death  staring  him  in  the  face,  the  brave  old 
man  still  stood  up  for  his  cherished  principles,  and 
defied  them  to  do  their  worst.  He  had  a  couple  of 
U.  S.  army- wagons  at  his  service,  which  contained 
his  baggage  and  a  new  font  of  type,  which  he  was 
going  to  use,  as  he  said,  when  he  got  back  to  his 
home.  He  was  told,  perhaps  he  couldn't  stay  there, 
when  he  replied  "  As  long  as  Gen.  Burnside  remains 
in  the  State,  I  am  bound  to  stay,  and  when  he  leaves 
I  can  tell  better  what  I  will  do."  Soon  afterwards 
the  Parson  passed  on  over  the  mountain,  and  reached 
Knoxville  in  safety,  where  the  secessionists  would 
as  lief  have  seen  his  Satanic  Majesty  appear  among 
them  as  the  Parson,  for  they  had  had  their  day,  and 
they  now  trembled  in  their  blockade-running  shoes 
at  the  prospect  that  the  Parson  was  about  to  have 
his.  They  well  knew  he  would  retaliate  with  equal 
severity,  and  justly,  too;  for  no  punishment  could 
he  inflict  on  them  that  would  more  than  compensate 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      413 

for  their  atrociously  barbarous  crimes,  committed 
on  him  by  them ;  for  were  the  whole  class  of 
secessionists  and  their  sympathizers  exterminated 
from  the  face  of  the  earth,  seas  of  blood  and  millions 
of  treasure  would  have  been  saved  to  this  most  pre 
cious  Government,  and  the  nation  now  would  not  be 
groaning  under  such  onerous  taxation. 

The  regiment,  after  a  good  rest,  ascended  the 
mountain  in  a  drenching  rain,  but  not  so  cold  as  the 
day  before,  and  reached  the  Gap  at  10J  A.  M.,  where 
it  halted  and  viewed  the  fortifications  that  were  now 
in  possession  of  the  23d  Army  Corps. 

How  a  place,  so  strongly  fortified  by  nature  as 
the  Gap,  could  be  taken  under  any  circumstances 
whatever  except  by  regular  siege  (and  then  only  by 
starvation),  was  a  mystery  to  all  thinking  military 
men.  After  a  halt  for  half  an  hour's  rest,  the  regi 
ment  began  to  descend  on  the  Tennessee  side,  and 
marched  on  towards  Tazewell,  thirteen  miles  south 
of  the  Gap,  where  it  went  into  camp  at  3  p.  M., 
within  half  a  mile  of  the  town,  on  the  right  of  the 
road,  close  on  the  margin  of  a  large  pond,  the  ar 
tillery  parking  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  road. 
While  here,  an  angry  feeling  sprung  up  between 
the  men  of  the  51st  P.  V.  and  the  officers  of  the 
batteries,  which  would  have  led  to  serious  conse 
quences  had  it  not  have  been  for  the  timely  inter 
ference  of  Lieut.  Col.  Schall.  The  artillery  officers 
had  issued  orders  to  their  batterymen  prohibiting 
them  from  shooting  anything  like  cattle,  hogs,  sheep, 
or  poultry,  or  molesting  the  property  of  any  of  the 
citizens.  Gen.  Burnside  had  issued  such  prohibi 
tory  orders  when  he  first  entered  the  State,  and 
they  were  still  in  force,  and  were  posted  up  all  along 


4:14      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY  FIRST   REGIMENT 

the  line  of  march  in  Tennessee.  But,  hunger  defies 
orders  and  officers,  and  the  result  was  the  shooting 
of  a  shoat  by  one  of  the  51st  P.  V.  in  the  field 
wherein  the  artillery  was  parked.  The  man  was 
arrested  by  a  guard  belonging  to  the  battery,  at  the 
command  of  the  artillery  officer — which  officer, 
legally,  had  a  right  to  order  the  arrest,  but, 
morally,  he  had  not;  and  in  tLe  latter  light  the 
men  viewed  it,  and  were  plotting  a  rescue,  when 
Lieut.  Col.  Schall  was  informed  of  the  state  of 
affairs,  and,  as  brigade  commander,  had  the  man  set 
at  liberty  ;  arid  things  resumed  their  wonted  tran 
quillity.  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  never  acted  the  part  of 
a  tyrant  in  the  enforcement  of  an  order.  When  a 
rigid  order  was  to  be  enforced,  he  generally  had  it 
enforced  as  strictly  as  any  other  commander,  and  at 
the  same  time  retained  the  affection  of  his  com 
mand,  whether  of  a  regiment  or  a  brigade.  He  would 
allow  the  men  to  forage  for  food  when  rations  could 
not  be  furnished  by  the  government,  even  in  con 
flict  with  standing  orders  against  such  actions.  He 
could  not  see  his  command  suffer  for  food  when 
plenty  surrounded  them,  but  was  always  careful 
that  the  Union-loving  citizens  should  suffer  the  least 
by  depredations  committed  by  his  men.  The  wagon 
train  arrived  about  an  hour  after  the  regiment,  with 
a  scanty  issue  of  rations,  but  no  forage,  and  the 
regiment  had  to  lay  over  until  the  morning  of  the 
16th,  to  give  the  forage  train  an  opportunity  to 
gather  forage  sufficient  for  the  remainder  of  the 
march. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  415 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

An  infuriated  she-rebel — Clinch  river — Maynardsville — A  loyal 
farmer — Return  of  Major  Bolton — Arrival  at  Knoxville — 
Misfortunes  of  a  Glee-club— Correspondence — Loudon — 
Retreat  across  the  river — Grand  leap  of  a  locomotive — • 
Taking  up  the  pontoons — Flank  movement  of  Gen.  Long- 
street — March  to  Lenoir  Station — Leiper's  Ferry — A  brave 
corporal — Letters  to  the  Defender. 

AFTER  leaving  the  Gap  about  five  miles  in  the 
rear,  Capt.  Bisbing  halted  the  regiment  near  an 
apple  orchard,  to  enable  the  men  to  fill  their  can 
teens  and  to  rest.  About  one  hundred  yards  off  to 
the  right  of  the  road  stood  a  long  one-storied  house. 
This  house  was  visited  by  some  of  the  boys  for  the 
purpose  of  getting  something  to  eat.  They  found 
the  door  fastened  on  the  inside,  and  they  were 
unable  to  gain  admittance  in  that  way  ;  and  sup 
posing  the  denizens  had  "  skedaddled,"  attempted  to 
seek  ingress  by  a  side-window.  But,  on  peering  in 
at  the  window,  they  discovered  a  female  within,  at 
least  what  proved  to  be  a  female  afterwards,  for  she 
did  not  appear  to  be  anything  short  of  Barnum's 
"  What  is  it  ?"  Her  hair  stood  out  in  a  mop  that 
nothing  less  than  a  bushel  basket  would  encompass, 
and  looked  like  a  large  bundle  of  tow  in  color.  Her 
head  certainly  had  not  been  combed  since  the  re 
bellion  broke  out.  As  soon  as  she  discovered  the 
men  at  her  window,  she  unbarred  the  door,  seized 
an  axe,  and  rushed  on  them  with  the  impetuosity  of 
a  tigress.  The  boys  vacated  their  position,  "  rallied 
on  the  regiment "  as  their  reserve,  and  entered  into 
a  war  of  words  with  the  termagant,  in  which  they 


416     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

came  off  only  second-best.  Her  language  was  both 
blasphemous  and  obscene,  her  voice  shrill  as  a  fife, 
and  with  the  uplifted  axe  she  charged  and  re-charged 
to  drive  the  regiment  from  their  resting  place  in  the 
road.  When  she  found  that  they  were  Pennsylva- 
riians,  her  ra?e  knew  no  bounds,  and  she  exhausted 
the  vocabulary  of  epithets  on  the  Yankee  "s —  of 
b —  !"  After  leaving  her  premises,  she  still  followed 
after  the  regiment  a  short  distance  ;  and  at  this  time 
the  cause  of  her  antipathy  to  the  Pennsylvanians 
was  made  manifest.  It  appears  that  her  husband 
was  killed  in  battle  in  the  fore  part  of  the  rebellion 
by  a  Pennsylvania  regiment,  and  the  loss  of  her 
husband  had  partly  or  wholly  deprived  her  of  her 
reason,  and  she  now  was  a  raving  maniac  while  in 
sight  of  those  whom  she  supposed  was  the  cause  of 
all  her  trouble.  How  she  managed  to  live,  none 
could  tell.  The  rebel  army  had  fed  her  while  it 
held  the  Gap,  but  now  she  refused  all  assistance 
from  the  Unionists,  either  civilian  or  military.  Her 
appearance  will  be  remembered  by  all  who  were 
with  the  regiment  that  day,  as  also  by  thousands 
who  marched  along  that  road  afterwards,  for  she 
attacked  all  who  passed  her  house. 

At  9  A.  M.,  the  regiment  left  camp  and  passed 
through  Tazewell,  and  took  the  road  to  the  right  or 
east  of  the  town  for  Knoxville.  While  passing 
through  Tazewell,  a  small  Union  flag  was  seen 
hanging  from  a  window  of  a  house  that  was  pointed 
out  as  the  residence  of  three  sisters  of  Maj.  Gen. 
Kobert  Patterson,  of  Philadelphia.  Two  of  the 
sisters  were  violent  Secessionists,  and  the  third  was 
an  extreme  Unionist;  and  it  was  this  latter  one  that 
had  hung  out  tho  Union  flag. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  41? 

After  leaving  Tazewell  about  twelve  miles  in  the 
rear,  the  regiment  was  again  compelled  to  ford  the 
Clinch  or  Tennessee  river.  This  was  a  most  dis 
agreeable  duty,  being  very  near  half  a  mile  wide, 
and  very  deep,  but  with  a  good  bed  for  fording, 
consisting  of  gravel  and  small  rock.  After  crossing 
the  river,  (which  took  a  long  time  to  accomplish,  on 
account  of  such  slow  progress  being  made  in  ford 
ing  a  deep  stream  with  a  swift  current,)  the  regi 
ment  filed  to  the  left  of  the  road,  and  encamped 
about  4  P.  M.  in  a  small  field  in  the  rear  of  an  old 
barn.  Next  morning  (the  17th)  the  regiment  left 
the  ford  at  8  o'clock,  and  had  an  exceedingly  difficult 
road  to  march  over,  it  being  a  succession  of  hills. 
For  about  seven  miles  our  route  lay  in  the  bed  of 
a  swift-running  stream  of  uncertain  depth — now  not 
more  than  a  couple  of  inches  deep,  then,  the  next 
step,  knee-deep.  After  crossing  this  elevation,  the 
regiment  passed  through  a  small  village,  of  which  a 
large  saw-mill  was  the  principal  feature,  called  May- 
nardsville,  the  county-seat  of  Union  county,  and 
proceeded  about  six  miles  further  and  went  into  camp 
on  a  staunch  Union  man's  farm,  to  the  right  of  the 
road,  on  the  banks  of  a  large  creek  of  splendid 
water.  This  man's  property  was  under  a  "safe 
guard,"  issued  by  Gen.  Burnside.  Consequently  his 
cattle,  hogs,  sheep,  &c.;  with  which  he  was  amply 
supplied,  suffered  from  no  act  of  the  51st  P.  V.,  if  we 
except  the  shooting  of  a  fine  goose  by  one  of  the  men, 
who  was  ignorant  of  the  existence  of  the  safe-guard. 
This  farmer,  who  was  well  blest  with  this  world's 
goods,  showed  that  he  possessed  a  heart  susceptible 
of  kindness,  for  when  he  heard  the  men  complain  of 
having  so  little  to  eat,  he  gave  them  permission  to 


418      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY -FIRST   REGIMENT 

kill  some  of  his  sheep,  which  were  in  splendid  con 
dition,  with  the  injunction  not  to  kill  more  than 
they  would  be  able  to  consume,  as  he  did  not  ap 
prove  (and  justly  too)  of  wasting  that  which  would 
be  needed  another  day.  The  regiment  had  a  good 
supper  that  night,  and  without  violating  discipline ; 
but  the  after  part  of  the  night  was  most  cheerlessly 
spent,  for  it  began  to  rain,  and  the  water  ran  in 
under  the  tents  rousing  the  sleepers  to  a  sense  of 
their  condition.  Towards  daylight  the  rain  slack 
ened  a  little,  and  the  boys  prepared  their  morning 
rneal  while  they  had  a  chance.  At  7  A.  M.  of  Sunday 
(18th)  the  regiment  left  for  another  day  of  hard 
marching — raining  copiously  all  day,  the  roads  in  a 
most  horrid  condition,  the  men's  clothing  dripping 
wet,  and  the  mud  of  such  a  soft,  greasy,  unctuous 
nature,  and  almost  knee- deep,  that  entirely  baffles 
description.  Seventeen  miles  to  be  done  in  that 
kind  of  roads,  as  they  were  all  alike;  but  the  men 
persevered,  and,  only  a  few  straggling,  reached  a  flat 
or  meadow  on  the  left  of  the  road,  bounded  on  one 
side  by  a  large  creek,  and  within  four  miles  of  Knox- 
ville,  at  5  P.  M.  While  laying  out  the  camp-ground, 
preparatory  to  pitching  tents,  the  regiment  was  sur 
prised  at  the  appearance  of  three  horsemen,  who 
were  dashing  up  the  road  at  full  gallop  towards 
the  camp,  but,  on  a  closer  view,  it  was  ascertained  to 
be  Maj.  Wm.  J.  Bolton,  Capt.  Lane  S.  Hart,  and 
Private  Wm.  P.  Schall,  who  had  just  returned  from 
their  homes.  This  acquisition  to  the  number  of 
commissioned  officers  was  hailed  with  delight,  and 
the  men  evinced  a  deal  of  pleasure  in  having  their 
old  major  with  them  once  more.  On  the  next  morn 
ing,  at  9  A.  M.  of  the  19th,  the  regiment  took  up  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      419 

line  of  march  to  complete  the  task  of  one  hundred 
arid  fifty-seven  miles,  which  they  succeeded -in  doing 
at  10J  A.  M.  of  the  same  morning,  making  the  one 
hundred  and  fifty-seven  miles  in  precisely  eighty  - 
two  hours  as  follows: 

Oct.  3d,  10  miles,  4  hours ;  3d,  7£  miles,  7  hours  ;  4th,  11 
miles,  5£  hours ;  5th,  8^  miles,  3  hours ;  Oth,  lay  over  until  the 
10th;  10th,  10  miles,  5  hours;  llth,  19  miles,  8^  hours;  12th, 
14  miles,  7|  hours;  13th,  14  miles,  6  hours;  14th,  15  miles,  7 
hours  ;  15th,  lay  over  until  the  16th  ;  16th,  13  miles,  8  hours  ; 
17th,  14  miles,  9  hours  ;  18th,  17  miles,  10  hours  ;  19th,  4  miles, 
1|  hours.  Total,  157  miles  in  82  hours. 

To  the  casual  reader  this  may  not  seem  to  be 
much  of  a  march,  but  to  march  one  hundred  and 
fifty-seven  miles  in  eighty  two  hours,  climbing  in 
numerable  mountains,  fording  deep,  wide,  and  swift- 
current  rivers,  and  in  muddy  or  on  rocky  roads,  with 
heavy  rains  just  half  the  time,  but  sufficient  to  keep 
the  men  dripping  wet  all  the  time.  We  think  it  a 
remarkable  march,  inasmuch  as  the  men  were  so 
scantily  rationed,  and  carrying  heavy  knapsacks, 
two  to  three  pieces  of  D'Abri  tents,  a  gum  and  a 
woollen  blanket,  plates,  frying-pans,  tin-cups,  their 
guns  and  accoutrements,  making,  on  an  average, 
about  sixty-one  pounds  for  each  man  to  carry,  and 
as  such  things  always  seem  to  get  heavier  the  fur 
ther  they  are  carried,  the  weight  appeared  to  be  not 
less  than  ninety  or  one  hundred  pounds  by  the  time 
the  regiment  arrived  at  Knoxville;  arriving  there 
completely  jaded  out  and  very  hungry,  with  a  poorer 
prospect  than  before  of  getting  a  full  half-ration  of 
coffee,  or  hard-tack  and  coffee.  The  regiment  en 
camped  in  a  field  in  the  suburbs  of  the  city,  about 
half  a  mile  northwest  of  the  East  Tennessee  and 
Virginia  Railroad  depot.  Soon  after  the  tents  were 
pitched,  the  boys  took  a  stroll  through  the  city,  and 


420     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

those  who  were  the  fortunate  possessors  of  a  few 
"stamps"  invested  them  in  such  things  to  eat  as 
could  be  found.  The  principal  things  were  molasses, 
corn  meal,  and  tobacco,  which  were  held  at  untold 
prices.  The  molasses  was  sold  at  one  dollar  per 
canteenf'ul ;  corn  meal  at  fifteen  cents  per  pound  ;  and 
only  a  very  limited  quantity  could  be  obtained  even 
at  those  prices. 

A  few  of  the  men  of  the  regiment  who  had  formed 
themselves  into  a  glee-club,  made  the  acquaintance 
of  some  of  the  Knoxville  ladies,  and  spent  an  hour 
or  two  the  first  night  after  their  arrival  in  serenading 
their  new-made  acquaintances  by  singing  "  When 
this  cruel  war  is  over/'  "  Who  will  care  for  mother 
now  ?"  and  a  number  of  others,  until  2  A.  M.  of  the 
22d  ;  and  again  went  into  the  city  in  the  evening  of 
the  same  date  and  serenaded  the  fair  ones  once  more ; 
in  fact,  they  had  spent  the  most  of  the  day  in  town^ 
and  while  there  the  regiment  received  marching 
orders,  to  be  ready  to  move  in  an  hour  and  a  half; 
but  of  this  the  singers  were  ignorant,  and  at  the 
designated  time  for  the  regiment  to  leave,  everything 
was  in  readiness  excepting  the  serenaders,  who  were 
still  absent.  Their  tentmates  had  packed  up  their 
knapsacks,  strapped  on  their  blankets  and  laid  all  their 
arms,  accoutrements,  and  other  property  in  a  heap, 
in  case  they  returned  in  time  to  leave  with  the  regi 
ment — but  no;  the  regiment  left  them,  and  they  lost 
guns  and  all  else,  for  when  they  returned  to  the  old 
camp-ground  everything  had  been  carried  off;  and 
thinking  that  some  of  their  comrades  had  their  arti 
cles  with  them  for  safety,  returned  to  the  city  to  do 
more  serenading;  but  on  their  return  to  the  regi 
ment,  they  found  themselves  poor  indeed!  which  no 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  421 

doubt  served  to  teach  them  that  a  soldier  has  no 
business  to  serenade  all  day  and  night,  to  the  neglect 
of  his  military  duties. 

On  the  22d,  the  regiment  left  camp  at  Knoxville 
at  3J  P.  M.,  and  marched  to  the  depot  of  the  East 
Tennessee  and  Virginia  Kailroad,  preparatory  to  em 
barking  for  Loudon,  Tennessee.  The  correspondent 
of  the  Defender,  "  T.  H.  P.,"  gives  the  move  in  detail 
as  follows : 

CAMP  OF  THE  51sT  REG'T  P.  V. 
OPPOSITE  LOUDON,  TENNESSEE,  Oct.  26th,  1863. 
Yesterday  we  were  blessed  with  another  mail,  it  being 
the  second  one  since  we  left  Crab  Orchard,  Kentucky  ;  the 
boys  were  glad  of  it,  I  assure  you,  for  it  seems  as  if  we  are 
shut  out  now  entirely  from  the  world,  everything  around 
"these  diggings"  is  literally  deserted,  and  nothing  but  tents, 
teams,  soldiers,  and  fortifications  of  immense  strength  meet 
the  eye  in  all  directions.  On  Thursday,  22d  inst.,  at  two 
o'clock  P.  M.,  we  received  orders  to  be  ready  to  march  from 
Knoxville  in  one  and  a-half  hours.  In  a  few  minutes  after  re 
ceiving  the  orders,  tents  were  struck,  rations  issued  for  three 
days,  forty  rounds  of  ammunition  to  each  man,  and  then  all 
were  ready  to  leave  ;  but  at  the  expiration  of  the  time  we  were 
still  in  camp,  in  fact  we  did  not  leave  until  six  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  when  we  marched  to  the  depot  of  the  East  Tennessee 
and  Virginia  Railroad,  to  take  the  cars  for  this  place  ;  but  as 
there  were  only  cars  enough  to  take  the  first  brigade,  we  were 
marched  to  the  rear  of  the  depot,  stacked  arms  and  laid  on  the 
platform  of  the  depot  all  night.  At  daybreak  on  Friday  23d, 
it  set  in  a  cold,  heavy  rain,  which  continued  without  one 
minute's  abatement  in  its  fury  until  Saturday  morning.  At 
about  eight  o'clock  A.  M.,  on  Friday,  the  cars  returned  for  us, 
but  through  the  inflexible  power  of  "  red  tape,"  we  did  not  get 
embarked.  As  soon  as  tl  red  tape  "  said  all  was  ready,  it  was 
discovered  that  the  telegraph  wires  were  cut  somewhere  be 
tween  the  two  points.  A  guard  was  immediately  detailed  and 
put  upon  the  engine  and  tender,  which  was  uncoupled  from 
the  train,  and  went  a  whizzing  over  the  road  on  a  voyage  of 
discovery,  when  within  fifteen  miles  of  Loudon,  they  found  the 


422     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

wires  clown,  the  chmage  was  repaired,  and  a  despatch  sent  to 
Knoxville  to  that  effect.  Another  engine  was  fired  up,  head 
quarters'  baggage  and  horses  loaded,  and  at  half-past  one  p.  M. 
we  were  loaded.  Companies  A  and  F  were  more  fortunate 
than  the  rest  of  us,  they  obtaining  a  close-covered  car,  the  re 
mainder  of  us  were  loaded  on  trucks,  and  being  without  either 
sides  or  roof  we  were  kept  standing  in  the  cold,  driving  rain 
until  three  o'clock,  being  but  thinly  clad,  very  few  having 
overcoats,  and  wet  to  the  skin,  we  suffered  terribly  with  the 
cold.  At  the  time  the  rations  were  issued  for  three  days,  it 
was  intended  to  serve  us  until  Sunday  night,  but  as  they  were 
considerably  less  than  half  rations,  some  of  the  boys  were 
already  out  of  "grub."  Six  crackers  were  the  allowance  for 
the  three  days,  and  any  ordinary  man  would  have  consumed 
them  in  one  day.  Hunger  began  to  gnaw  the  vitals  of  some, 
making  their  cold  and  wet  situation  far  from  being  pleasant. 
At  last  the  whistle  blew  and  off  we  went,  but  not  with  the 
speed  of  your  lightning  express  train  on  the  Pennsylvania 
Central  Railroad,  but  at  about  seven  miles  an  hour.  I  think  I 
hear  you  say,  that  is  slow  travelling  !  Well,  it  was  slow,  but 
from  what  followed,  I  think  we  did  "  bully."  The  men  on  half 
rations,  the  road  in  not  quite  half  repair,  the  locomotive  only 
in  half  running  order,  and  I  believe  it  was,  like  the  men,  on 
half  rations  of  wood  and  water  also,  for  it  almost  "  stuck  fast  " 
on  every  slight  grade,  in  fact  it  did  make  a  "  stick  "  once  on  a 
grade,  and  General  Burnside,  who  was  on  the  train  with  us, 
told  Lieutenant-Colonel  Schall,  who  was  and  is  in  command 
of  the  brigade,  to  get  a  dozen  men  off  of  each  car  to  push  the 
train  up  the  grade ;  the  men  jumped  off  and  put  their 
shoulders  to  the  wheel,  having  the  example  set  by  General 
Burnside  in  person,  who  was  "  leaning  into  it "  like  a  "  Georgia 
Major,"  thinking,  no  doubt,  that  if  he  got  stuck  in  the  mud  last 
winter  at  Fredericksburg,  that  it  should  not  go  before  this  un 
charitable  world  that  he  got  stuck  on  railroad  iron  in  Tennes 
see.  After  a  long  push,  a  strong  push,  and  a  push  altogether, 
we  got  over  the  grade,  and  arrived  at  the  end  of  our  journey  at 
nine  o'clock  that  night.  We  disembarked,  amid  the  rain  and 
dark,  in  mud  almost  knee-deep,  as  near  dead  as  alive,  every 
one  shivering  and  shaking  as  with  a  fit  of  ague.  Teeth  chat 
tering,  and  knees  knocking  together,  like  castinets,  each  one 
found  that  under  the  circumstances  that  surrounded  us  that  we 
would  have  to  make  the  best  of  the  most  disagreeable  situa- 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  423 

tion,  and  therefore  each  one  struck  out  on  his  own  hook,  as  it 
was  impossible  to  form  the  regiment  within  the  narrow  limits 
of  the  deep  cut  where  we  disembarked.  The  boys  of  the  whole 
brigade  scattered  and  sought  such  shelter  as  they  could  best 
obtain  for  the  night.  Next  morning  at  daylight,  the  regiment 
began  to  collect  together  around  the  quarters  of  Major  Bolton 
and  Captain  Bisbing,  and  pitched  their  tents  ;  about  three 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  regiment  was  formed,  and  we 
moved  to  the  side  of  a  hill  and  went  into  regular  camp,  where 
we  now  are. 

AVe  are  lying  on  the  east  side  of  the  Tennessee  river,  the 
town  of  Loudon  laying  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river,  almost 
entirely  surrounded  by  lofty  heights,  which  are  strongly  forti 
fied  and  commanding  the  town  and  surrounding  country  for  a 
great  distance.  There  is  a  pontoon  bridge  laid  across  the 
river  that  the  rebels  left  behind  them  in  their  hurry  to  get 
away.  The  railroad  bridge,  which  spanned  the  river  at  this 
point,  they  destroyed  by  fire  when  on  their  retreat.  It  was,  no 
doubt,  a  fine  structure,  it  contained  ten  well-constructed  piers, 
which  are  nil  that  remain  standing  to  mark  the  work  of 
peaceful  times. 

On  Saturday,  the  rebels  sent  in  a  flag  of  truce,  demanding 
the  town  by  three  o'clock  of  that  afternoon.  General  Burn- 
side  "couldn't  see  the  point"  and  retained  the  flag  of  truce, 
and  sent  out  two  pieces  of  artillery  to  answer  for  him ;  a  brisk 
engagement  ensued,  and  the  rebels  fell  back  to  a  small  town, 
Philadelphia.  Some  of  your  readers  may  question  the  propri 
ety  of  keeping  the  flag  of  truce,  but  it  was  only  paying  the 
same  party  back  in  their  own  coin  ;  for  only  a  few  nights  ago, 
Wolford,  with  his  command  of  cavalry,  were  in  a  tight  place, 
and  sent  in  a  flag  of  truce  to  the  rebels  for  some  special  pur 
pose,  when  the  rebs  retained  the  flag  of  truce,  and  immediately 
deployed  their  columns,  and  had  him  entirely  surrounded  be 
fore  he  was  aware  of  the  coils  so  adroitly  placed  around  him. 
He  (Wolford)  soon  perceived  his  situation,  and,  as  one  of  his 
own  men  told  me,  he  told  his  men  of  the  predicament  that  they 
were  in  and  all  that  was  left  for  them  to  do,  was  "  to  do  or  die." 
Some  succeeded  in  cutting  their  way  out,  but  about  three  hun 
dred  were  captured  ;  and  General  Burnside  merely  retained 
their  flag  of  truce  as  an  equivalent. 

More  Anon.  T.  II.  P. 


424         HISTOKYOF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

An  extract  from  a  private  letter,  of  which  we  give 
below,  confirms  all  that  1<T.  H.  P.1'  asserts  in  his 
correspondence,  and  reads  almost  as  if  one  person 
had  written  them  both,  but  »s  they  were  written  by 
two  distinct  persons,  it  shows  how  near  the  two 
persons  felt  under  the  same  circumstances,  which  is 
but  a  type  of  the  condition  and  feelings  of  the  whole 
regiment.  It  says  : 

"  Last  Thursday  we  left  camp,  but  not  Knoxville  ;  we 
struck  tents  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  but  did  not  leave 
till  six,  when  we  went  to  the  depot  to  take  the  cars  for  some 
where,  twenty-eight  or  thirty  miles  southwest  of  Knoxville. 
On  arriving  at  the  depot,  there  were  no  cars  to  take  us,  for 
what  few  there  was  had  loaded  with  Colonel  Siegfried's  brigade, 
and  we  had  to  lie  there  all  night  on  the  platform  of  the  depot, 
without  any  shelter  excepting  the  broad  canopy  of  Heaven, 
which  wasn't  tucked  down  around  the  edges,  like  mother  used 
to  tuck  the  quilts  in  our  little  trundle  bed,  and  the  biting, 
frosty  wind  didn't  help  to  keep  us  any  warmer.  Before  day 
break  on  Friday,  a  heavy,  cold  rain  set  in,  and  kept  raining 
until  last  night.  We  all  got  wet  to  the  skin  while  at  the  depot, 
and  being  nearly  naked,  no  tongue  can  tell  what  we  suffered. 
At  one  o'clock  on  Friday  afternoon,  we  were  loaded  on  the  cars, 
or  rather  trucks,  fo*r  they  were  cars  only  used  for  dirt  and  hauling 
wood,  being  without  either  sides  or  coverings,  and  there  we 
had  to  stand  and  take  it,  until  three  o'clock,  in  the  rain  ;  then 
we  started  off,  the  cold  and  driving  rain  chilling  us  all  to  the 
heart.  Shame's  sake  kept  many  a  one  of  us  from  shedding  tears 
in  his  distress.  We  arrived  here  at  nine  o'clock  that  night, 
more  dead  than  alive,  our  teeth  chattering,  and  our  knees  knock 
ing  together  like  castinets,  we  were  unloaded  in  a  ditch,  along 
side  of  the  track,  in  mud  to  the  knees,  and  in  a  cut  so  deep  and 
narrow  that  only  one  man  could  walk  between  it  and  the  cars ; 
so  every  fellow  had  to  look  out  for  himself,  and  the  result  was 
we  all  got  lost  from  each  other.  My  tentmate  and  I  walked 
about  a  mile  in  the  mud  and  dark,  until  we  found  an  old  log 
hut  nearly  ready  to  fall  down,  and  in  we  went,  made  a  huge 
fire  and  dried  our  clothes.  By  two  o'clock  in  the  morning,  we 
lay  down  on  some  rails  and  went  to  sleep  ;  no,  not  to  sleep,  to 
try  to  sleep,  I  mean.  When  daylight  came,  we  left  the  old 
house  and  went  over  on  a  high  hill,  made  a  fire,  had  a  cup  of 
hot  coffee,  but  nothing  to  eat,  for  on  Thursday  we  drew  rations 
to  last  us  until  Sunday  night,  but  as  we  got  less  than  half 
rations  for  that  time,  nearly  every  man  w7as  out  by  Friday 
night.  You  ask  what  were  we  to  do  until  to-night  ?  I  will  tell 
you  how  we  two  did.  I  borrowed  twenty-five  cents,  and  Bill 
went  over  to  the  town  and  bought  five  pounds  of  rye  middlings, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      425 

and  I  made  a  few  cakes,  so  ice  were  all  right.  I  saw  one  man 
pay  one  dollar  for  a  five  cent  loaf  of  bread,  which  he  ate  at 
once.  Well,  the  regiment  did  not  get  altogether  until  after  sun 
down  yesterday.  Burnside  and  his  staff  came  along  with  us, 
but  they  had  a  good  comfortable  passenger  car.  Yesterday, 
Burnside  kicked  up  a  muss  with  the  rebs  before  he  ate  his 
breakfast,  and  they  fought  all  day,  up  till  dark,  all  around  us, 
but  we  did  not  get  into  the  fight.  He  drove  them  back  seven 
miles,  to  a  small  town  called  Philadelphia,  on  the  other  side 
of  the  Tennessee  river. 

On  the  arrival  of  the  regiment  at  London,  it  dis 
embarked,  as  above  stated,  in  a  ditch,  in  a  deep  cut, 
at  the  terminus  of  the  railroad  track,  which  was 
about  one  mile  east  of  the  railroad  bridge,  that 
spanned,  or  had  before  its  destruction,  the  Tennes 
see  river  at  Loudon  ;  but  owing  to  the  stormy  night 
and  the  dense  darkness,  it  was  impossible  for  the 
regiment  to  form  in  line.  The  whole  brigade  was 
so  mixed,  that  the  men  gave  up  in  despair  of  get 
ting  in  their  proper  places  that  night,  and  all  sought 
such  shelter  as  they  could  find,  caring  very  little 
about  what  became  of  them.  As  soon  as  daylight 
of  the  next  morning  appeared,  the  men  began  to 
hunt  for  the  colors  of  their  respective  regiments, 
and  it  was  not  until  well  on  towards  the  middle  of 
the  afternoon  thnt  all  were  gathered  around  their 
regimental  headquarters.  Major  Bolton,  who  was 
now  in  command  of  the  regiment,  with  Capt.  Bis- 
bing  on  his  staff]  formed  his  regiment  and  en 
camped  it  on  a  suitable  site  only  a  short  distance 
from  where  it  had  disembarked  the  night  before. 
While  the  men  were  preparing  places  to  pitch  their 
tents,  it  was  found  that  the  field  was  swarming  with 
rabbits,  and  the  whole  regiment  dropped  their  axes 
and  hatchets  to  secure  some  of  the  game.  Some 
men  in  Companies  G,  H,  K,  and  B,  captured  from 
six  to  ten  each  by  knocking  them  over  with  clubs 

19* 


426     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

and  stones.  Nearly  every  man  had  one  or  two, 
which  helped  them  greatly  to  eke  out  their  rations. 
Our  forces  occupied  the  town  of  Loudon,  which 
lay  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Tennessee  river,  and 
was  accessible  by  only  a  pontoon-bridge  across  the 
river  above  the  town.  This  bridge  was  laid  by  the 
rebels,  who  were  driven  away  from  their  position 
by  Burnside's  furious  attack  on  them,  in  which  they 
did  not  get  time  to  destroy  it.  The  beautiful  ten- 
arch  railroad-bridge  had  been  thoroughly  destroyed 
by  the  enemy  some  time  previously,  but  did  not  get 
all  their  cars  away  when  they  left.  Nothing  trans 
pired,  while  lying  opposite  Loudon,  until  the  night 
of  the  27th  October,  when  orders  were  issued  to  be 
readv  to  move  at  daylight.  On  the  28th  instant, 
at  5  A.  M.,  the  regiment  formed  in  line  and  marched 
down  to  the  river  where  the  pontoon  was  stretched 
across,  and  filing  to  the  right,  parallel  with  the  river, 
drew  up  in  line  of  battle  facing  the  town.  Specu 
lation  ran  high  as  to  what  it  all  meant ;  but  soon 
the  object  was  discovered,  which  was  the  evacuation 
of  Loudon,  and  the  destruction  of  all  kinds  of  prop 
erty  that  would  render  "  aid  and  comfort  to  the 
enemy."  The  engineers  took  possession  of  the  pon 
toon  bridge,  and  as  soon  as  the  last  man  and  last 
mule  had  crossed  it,  the  engineers  "fell  in"  and 
took  up  the  boats,  under  the  protection  of  the  in 
fantry,  who  were  in  line  of  battle  in  supporting  dis 
tance.  Previous  to  taking  up  the  bridge,  a  locomo 
tive  that  was  coupled  to  a  number  of  cars  standing 
on  the  track  in  Loudon,  was  "  fired-up"  by  order  of 
General  Burnside,  and  as  soon  as  there  was  enough 
steam  generated  to  move  the  train,  it  was  turned  on, 
and  the  detail  having  charge  of  the  job  jumped  off; 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      427 

and  the  whole  thing  moved  away  slowly,  as  if  con 
scious  of  its  final  fate.  Having  about  two  hundred 
yards  to  run,  and  getting  a  full  head  of  steam  on,  it 
was  running  at  a  good  rate  of  speed  on  its  approach 
to  the  fatal  brink.  The  track  ran  out  to  the  first 
archway  over  the  water,  and  ended  abruptly  at  the 
precipice,  which  was  about  one  hundred  feet  high. 
As  the  locomotive  neared  the  spot,  it  seemed  as  if 
the  whole  army  was  spell- bound,  each  one  holding 
his  breath  in  anxiety.  At  last,  the  huge  iron  horse 
reaches  the  end  of  the  track  and  shoots  over  the 
precipice,  dragging  its  companions  in  misfortune 
into  the  awful  abyss  below.  A  loud  crash,  and  a 
cloud  of  steam,  told  that  the  last  job  of  evacuation 
was  completed ;  and  the  wreck,  nearly  all  of  which 
was  engulfed  from  view,  lay  at  the  bottom  of  the 
river  !  After  the  pontoon  boats  were  taken  up,  they 
were  conveyed  to  the  end  of  the  railroad  track 
where  the  regiment  had  disembarked  in  the  deep 
cut.  They  were  then  hauled  up  to  the  top  of  the 
embankment  of  the  cut,  and  the  51st  P.  Y.  was  de 
tailed  to  load  them  on  the  cars,  which  occupied  the 
remainder  of  that  day  and  nearly  all  of  the  next. 
There  were  fifty -two  of  the  largest  size  pontoon 
boats,  weighing  near  a  ton  each,  and  being  un 
wieldy,  it  was  a  "  fatigue  duty"  that  will  be  long 
remembered  by  the  regiment.  After  getting  the 
last  boat  loaded,  we  took  up  the  line  of  march  for 
Lenoir  Station,  six  miles  from  Loudon,  on  the 
railroad  from  the  hitter  place  to  Knoxville.  Here 
the  regiment  went  into  carnp,  with  a  prospect  of  re 
maining  for  the  winter.  The  30th  and  31st  of  this 
month  was  occupied  in  fitting  up  our  abode  in  a 


428     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY  FIRST    REGIMENT 

comfortable  manner.  It.  was  situated  on  the  Holston 
river,  twenty-two  miles  west  of  Knoxville. 

On  the  1st  of  November,  1863,  a  detail  of  about 
fifty-five  men  were  sent  up  the  Holston  river  six 
miles  to  do  picketing  at  Leiper's  Ferry.  This  de 
tail  was  under  the  command  of  Gapt.  Gaulin  and 
Sergt.  G.  W.  Patterson,  Co.  I,  and  Corpl.  Levi 
Ammons,  of  Co.  H.  On  the  night  of  the  2d,  the 
rebel  pickets  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  only 
a  few  yards  wide,  fired  into  Corpl.  Ammon's  relief; 
but  the  corporal  was  of  a  courageous  nature,  and 
stood  his  ground  with  his  little  band  of  heroes  like 
a  true  soldier,  and  fought  the  enemy  for  twenty 
minutes,  when  the  rebels  retired  to  their  original 
position. 

The  correspondent  of  the  Defender  gives  another 
letter  which  treats  of  the  operations  of  the  51st  P.  V. 
in  detail,  which  we  here  insert : 

CAMP  OF  THE  51sT  REGT.  P.  Y., 

LENOIR,  TENN.,  Nov.  2d,  18G3. 

You  see  we  have  again  changed  our  location  since  I  wrote 
my  last.  We  left  Loudon  on  the  29th  ult.,  and  marched  to 
this  place,  distant  six  miles  from  London.  On  the  28th  ult., 
we  evacuated  the  town  and  withdrew  all  of  our  forces  to  this 
side  of  the  Tennessee  river.  The  pontoon  bridge  was  taken  up, 
and  we  were  detailed  to  load  the  boats  on  the  cars,  which  was 
done,  and  they  were  sent  to  Knoxville  A  locomotive  and  two 
cars  that  were  on  the  Loudon  side  of  the  river  had  to  be  de 
stroyed,  and  accordingly  the  engine  was  fired  up,  and  as  soon 
as  enough  steam  had  generated  to  put  the  locomotive  and  cars 
in  motion,  they  were  started  off  to  make  their  last  trip.  They 
ran  about  two  hundred  yards  to  where  the  track  ends  at  the 
bridge,  and  made  a  final  leap  into  the  depths  below  of  the  Ten 
nessee  river,  with  a  tremendous  crash  and  a  cloud  of  steam, 
and  all  was  over.  It  was  a  grand  sight  to  those  who  beheld 
it,  and  was  witnessed  by  thousands  of  troops  and  citizens.  I 
cannot  pretend  to  give  any  reason  why  Gen.  Burnside  evacu- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      429 

ated  the  town,  but  as  he  is  competent  to  lead  an  army  lie  is 
likewise  competent  to  determine  what  is  the  most  sagacious. 
Part  of  the  regiment  is  on  picket  about  six  miles  from  here,  at 
Leiper's  Ferry,  on  the  Tennessee  river.  There  are  numerous 
foraging  parties  going  out  daily,  scouring  the  country  around  for 
miles,  and  always  return  with  wagons  well  filled  with  corn, 
&c.  It  is  a  risky  business  sometimes,  as  our  parties  enter  a 
large  cornfield  on  one  side,  the  rebels  enter  on  the  other  side, 
in  considerable  force,  for  the  purpose  of  capturing  our  men, 
but  they  very  seldom  ever  succeed  in  a  capture.  The  corn 
crop  in  this  region  is  a  good  one,  and  as  for  team  supplies 
our  force  might  forage  here  for  a  long  time.  Should  we  stay 
here,  as  some  suppose,  we  will  remain  here  all  winter.  The 
First  Division  has  already  commenced  building  log  huts  for 
winter-quarters,  and  a  few  of  our  (Second)  Division  are  prepar 
ing  also  winter-quarters,  but  as  usual  this  corps  will  not  be  per 
mitted  to  lay  long  enough  in  one  place  to  enjoy  more  than  a 
couple  of  days  in  comfortable  quarters ;  the  Ninth  Corps  must 
be  kept  moving,  if  it  is  only  for  the  sake  of  depriving  the  men 
of  a  little  comfort ;  but  we  can  live  anywhere,  anyhow,  or  in 
an}7"  place  ;  therefore  they  can't  put  us  wrong,  if  they  try.  Col. 
Hartranft  has  not  arrived  here  yet,  but  is  looked  for  daily. 
Lieut.-Col.  Schall  is  still  in  command  of  the  brigade.  Major 
Bolton  is  commanding  the  regiment ;  1st  Lieut.  Gillilan  is  acting 
Adjutant;  Sergt.  Isaac  Fizone,  acting  Sergt. -Major ;  and  a 
more  gentlemanly  set  of  officers  no  regiment  can  boast  of. 
The  weather  here  is  of  a  peculiar  kind  ;  I  thought  it  rained  in 
Mississippi,  when  we  were  there,  the  easiest  of  anything  in  this 
world,  but  down  in  that  State  it  only  rained  when  there  were 
clouds  flying,  but  here  it  rains  just  any  time  at  all,  whether 
there  are  clouds  or  not ;  one  hour  it  is  clear  and  pleasant,  the 
next  one  the  rain  comes  pouring  down,  and  if  you  look  up  you 
wonder  where  all  the  rain  comes  from  ;  and  if  it  clouds  up  in 
the  old-fashioned  style  for  a  rain,  it  does  it  up  brown,  I  tell  you. 
It  never  gets  tired  of  raining  then  ;  it  only  stops  because  its 
supply  of  the  aquatic  fluid  is  cut  off.  The  roads  are  in  bad  con 
dition,  and  it  is  difficult  for  artillery  to  move,  the  soil  being  of 
a  loose  nature,  and  the  almost  never-ceasing  rains  cause  the 
mud  to  be  very  deep.  The  face  of  the  country  is  very  hilly, 
but  well  watered  and  of  a  fertile  quality,  producing  splendid 
crops  of  cereals  as  well  as  of  the  Chinese  sugar-cane.  Grazing 
is  not  as  extensive  a  business  here  as  in  Kentucky,  but  no  one 


430      HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

can  doubt  but  it  can  be  carried  on  as  profitably  in  this  State  as 
in  any  of  the  Union.  There  is  every  facility  here  for  it — val 
leys,  hills,  mountains,  with  splendid  table-land,  and  well 
watered  in  all  sections.  All  that  is  needed  now  is  Peace,  and  a 
few  enterprising  capitalists  to  invest  in  natural  resources  of  this 
State  that  which  will  pay  them  a  larger  dividend  than  any  in 
vestment  that  can  be  found  up  North. 

Furloughs  are  still  granted,  but  with  restrictions,  subjecting 
the  men  to  a  division  court-martial  if  they  don't  report  in  per 
son  to  their  regiment  at  the  expiration  of  their  furlough.  Sergt. 
John  Fair,  of  Co.  C,  will  leave  here  in  a  few  days  for  home — 
he  receiving  a  furlough  for  twenty-five  days — and,  as  there  is 
no  other  going,  to  my  knowledge,  very  soon  again  from  here, 
I  mention  his  departure  in  case  any  one  at  home  wished  to 
send  any  light  parcels,  such  as  letters,  &c.,  to  their  friends  in 
the  regiment,  that,  on  his  return,  he  will  carry  them. 

While  on  dress  parade  a  few  nights  ago,  an  address  was  read 
to  the  regiment  by  Adj.  Gillilan  from  the  Ladies'  Union  Asso 
ciation  of  Norristown,  signed  by  Miss  Annie  Yerkes,  &c.  It 
was  received  in  the  same  spirit  as  it  was  penned,  and,  let  me 
assure  ihe  ladies  of  Norristown  and  its  vicinity,  that  while  the 
noble  old  Fifty-first  is  absent  doing  battle  for  our  glorious  coun 
try,  that  we  are  ever  mindful  of  the  generous  impulses  that 
prompts  their  gentle  hearts  to  hold  us  in  fond  remembrance  for 
our  efforts  to  sustain  our  Government,  and  to  throw  the  strong 
arm  of  "  the  Constitution  as  it  is  "  around  them  for  protection 
for  all  time  to  come  !  God  bless  the  ladies  of  Norristown  ! 
More  anon,  T.  H.  P. 

The  Defender  being  in  possession  of  a  number  of 
T.  H.  P.'s  letters,  notices  them  thus  : 

"  None  of  our  readers  wrill  fail,  of  course,  to  read  the  interest 
ing  letters  of  our  Fifty-first  correspondent.  See  how  cheer 
fully  the  soldiers  in  that  regiment  sustain  the  trials  and  suffer 
ings  they  are  almost  continually  exposed  to.  These  letters 
from  Mr.  Parker,  in  our  paper,  form  a  continuous  history  of  the 
51st  regiment  since  they  have  been  in  the  field.  They  will  be 
important  to  preserve  for  future  use. 

LENOIR,  EASTERN  TENNESSEE, 

Nov.  \Wi,  1863. 

Here  I  sit  in  camp  nearly  solitary  and  alone.  There  are,  as 
you  will  remember,  about  fifty-five  men  up  the  Tennessee 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      431 

river,  at  Leiper's  Ferry,  doing  picket  and  guard  duty.  Well, 
this  morning  the  reveille  was  beat  at  four  o'clock,  which  is  two 
hours  before  daylight,  and  soon  the  camp  was  in  busy  prepara 
tions  of  getting  breakfast.  At  six  o'clock  the  assembly  was 
beaten  and  the  boys  were  soon  "  in  harness."  The  companies 
formed  and  marched  out  to  the  color  line  and  the  regiment 
formed  there  and  stacked  arms,  and  the  boys  were  then  dis 
missed  with  the  injunction  to  be  ready  to  "  fall  in"  at  a  mo 
ment's  notice.  Now  you  ask  what  all  this  meant  ?  I  will  tell 
you  as  far  as  I  can,  correctly-  In  a  day  or  two  after  we  came 
here  from  London,  a  number  of  men  were  detailed  out  of  the 
corps  to  make  pontoon  boats.  Yesterday  the  boats  were  fin 
ished  and  most  of  them  hauled  to  the  ferry  at  this  post,  and  it 
is  the  intention  to  lay  a  pontoon  bridge  across  the  Tennessee 
river  at  this  place  to-day.  The  1st  brigade  crossed  the  river 
this  morning  about  half-past  six  o'clock  on  the  ferry  flat  boats, 
and  I  am  told,  but  how  true  I  cannot  say,  that  they  found 
plenty  of  rebels  on  the  other  side  and  also  were  fired  into  by 
the  rebels.  At  noon  orders  were  issued  for  about  a  hundred 
men  to  be  detailed  out  of  our  regiment  to  cross  the  river.  Ac 
cordingly  the  detail,  under  command  of  Capt.  Geo.  W.  Bisbing, 
left  and  nearly  cleaned  out  our  regiment,  being  but  very  few  fit 
for  duty  that  escaped  the  detail.  The  bridge  at  this  writing 
(two  o'clock  P.  M.)  is  a  little  more  than  half  across  the  river, 
and  it  is  confident!}7  expected  that  it  will  be  completed  by  this 
evening.  The  engineer  corps  and  the  workmen  have  not  been 
interfered  with  by  the  rebels  as  it  was  first  supposed  they 
would  be.  As  soon  as  the  bridge  is  finished  wagons  will  cross 
for  the  purpose  of  foraging.  A  large  number  of  Union  citizens 
who  live  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  from  here,  but  who  are 
necessarily  for  their  own  personal  safety  on  this  side,  say  that 
there  is  full  and  plenty  of  hay  and  corn  over  there,  while  others 
say  that  the  rebels  have  foraged  up  to  within  a  mile  or  two  of 
the  river  and  have  taken  everything — hay,  corn,  cattle,  sheep, 
hogs,  horses  and  mules,  completely  stripping  the  country  and 
citizens  of  every  vestige  of  movable  property,  and  at  the  same 
time  they  drive  eveiything  Union  outside  of  their  lines  into 
ours,  and  the  consequences  are  these  :  the  aged,  the  sick,  and 
infirm,  the  young  and  all,  have  to  seek  a  sheltering  place  be 
neath  some  bush  or  in  the  woods  within  our  lines  and  depend 
on  the  cold  charities  of  this  uncharitable  world  for  their  sub 
sistence,  for  they  lose  everything  they  possess  in  the  world 


432     HISTOKY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

at  the  hands  of  the  rebels.  The  Union  families  who  have  been 
driven  out  of  rebeldom  are  to  be  seen  in  clusters  of  five  to  ten 
persons  all  huddled  up  together  trying  to  make  the  best  of 
their  unfortunate  situation  in  the  woods  and  in  the  most  utter 
destitution,  for  even  their  clothing  has  been  taken  from  them. 
It  is  enough  to  make  a  callous  person  open  his  heart  to  sym 
pathy  to  hear  some  of  the  tales  of  sufferings  of  these  poor  Union 
women,  to  hear  a  mother  with  her  unconscious  infant  in  her 
arms  tell  how  she  has  travelled  all  night  in  the  woods  through 
the  cold  storms,  with  her  little  ones  at  her  side,  fleeing  from  her 
persecutors  to  seek  a  place  of  safety  ;  and  how  day  after  day, 
and  night  after  night,  her  little  ones  would  cry  for  food  and  to 
be  kept  warm,  of  which  the  first  she  could  not  give  and  the 
last  she  dare  not  do,  for  if  she  would  have  kindled  up  a  fire 
the  rising  column  of  smoke  from  it  would  have  betrayed  her 
whereabouts.  Some  may  doubt  the  plausibility  of  the  above, 
or  may  say  there  may  be  a  few  isolated  cases,  but  let  them  ask 
the  very  many  of  the  51st  Pennsylvania,  who  have  so  fre 
quently  of  late  been  out  foraging  for  miles  around  the  country, 
and  have  never  came  back  to  camp  without  meeting  a  large 
number  of  cases  of  the  above  persecutions. 

We  have  had  severe  cold  weather  for -these  three  last  days, 
freezing  at  nights  very  hard.  The  boys  feel  the  cold  very  sen 
sibly  this  autumn,  for  they  put  in  the  two  former  winters  with 
scarcely  knowing  that  it  was  winter  at  the  time,  but  we  are 
sadly  in  want  of  overcoats  and  there  is  no  telling  when  they 
will  arrive  here,  as  we  have  been  expecting  clothing  for  some 
time  past ;  it  certainly  will  come  soon. 

We  have  been  busy  putting  up  winter  quarters  for  these  few 
days  back,  as  it  is  supposed  that  we  are  to  winter  somewhere 
around  here  in  this  God-forsaken  region.  I  think  it  is  likely 
that  a  good  number  will  winter  here,  if  we  stay  six  weeks  here, 
for  it  will  be  enough  to  kill  one-half  of  the  regiment  off. 

M.y  individual  opinion  is  that  we  cannot  stay  here  this  win 
ter,  even  if  the  rebels  will  let  us,  for  the  roads  from  Kentucky 
over  the  mountains  will  be  impassable,  as  they  are  nearly  so 
now,  and  so  far  all  the  supplies  that  we  receive  have  to  come 
over  that  road.  We  are  put  on  quarter  rations  of  coffee  and 
sugar  already,  and  the  quartermasters  have  had  to  issue  flour 
to  us  instead  of  crackers  or  soft  bread,  and  how  JBurnside  is  to 
keep  his  army  here  on  the  extreme  short  rations  that  we  have 
been  on  for  these  three  last  weeks  all  winter  will  puzzle  not  a 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  433 

few.  He  certainly  will  have  to  do  one  of  two  things,  viz., 
either  fall  back  to  the  Gap  or  beyond  it,  or  push  his  way  down 
the  railroad  and  form  a  junction  with  J?osecrans  at  Chattanooga 
and  get  his  supplies  via  Nashville.  Perhaps  we  may  make  a 
haul  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  of  a  month  or  two  of  the 
rebs'  supplies,  and  should  that  be  the  case  we  then  can  stand 
the  winter  very  well.  Our  mails  are  somewhat  deranged  as 
we  are  in  the  receipt  of  very  light  ones.  We  get  one  of  these 
light  mails  twice  a  week.  I  suppose  one  cause  attributable  to 
the  mails  being  small  is,  that  the  mail  has  to  be  transported 
from  Crab  Orchard,  Ky.,  to  Knoxville,  Tenn.,  a  distance  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty-seven  miles,  on  pack  mules,  and  as  the 
mail  carrier  hurries  up  his  mules  it  cannot  be  that  he  overloads 
his  packers.  More  anon, 

T.  H.  P. 

KNOXVILLE,  Dec.  1th,  1808. 

Ere  these  lines  can  possibly  reach  the  reader's  eye  the  scenes 
and  incidents  to  which  they  refer  will  have  become  old  ;  but 
taking  it  for  granted  that  special  interest  is  manifested  in  the 
51st,  we  indulge  the  hope  that  they  will  at  least  receive  a  hasty 
perusal. 

When,  on  the  morning  of  the  12th  of  November,  we  com 
menced  laying  the  pontoon  bridges  across  the  Holston  river, 
at  Lenoir,  we  little  thought  that  in  a  few  days  the  work  of  so 
much  labor,  time  and  patience  would  be  destroyed.  Yet  such 
was  the  case.  Ere  any  of  the  contemplated  benefits  could  be 
acquired,  it  was  sunk  in  the  deep  waters  of  the  Holston. 

Shortly  after  midnight  on  the  14th,  orders  came  into  camp 
to  be  ready  to  move  at  a  moment's  notice.  At  five  o'clock 
orders  came  to  strike  tents  and  load  the  officers'  baggage. 
This  was  quickly  done,  and  the  wagons  were  at  once  sent  to 
Knoxville. 

The  morning  was  wet,  cold  and  cheerless.  The  regiment 
having  stacked  arms,  the  men  were  gathered  around  the  numer 
ous  fires  waiting  further  orders.  All  was  bustle  and  excite 
ment  around  us.  Our  pickets  on  the  other  side  of  the  river 
had  been  attacked,  and  fell  back  to  this  side.  The  pontoon 
bridge  was  destroyed,  and  the  troops  from  London  came  pour 
ing  into  Lenoir.  There  was  everything  to  indicate  a  retreat. 

But  at  10  o'clock,  Gen.  Burnside  arrived  in  a  special  train 
from  Knoxville,  and  soon  thereafter  there  was  a  change  of 


434     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

movement.  The  troops  that  had  just  fallen  back  came  to  an 
"about  face,"  and  again  moved  to  the  front.  The  1st  Divis 
ion  of  the  9th  Corps,  too,- was  sent  forward.  Batteries  dashed 
wildly  down  the  road,  and  we  certainly  expected  a  battle  in  the 
afternoon. 

Our  division  remained  fast,  although  momentarily  expecting 
orders  to  move.  The  falling  rain  made  our  situation  far  from 
pleasant.  Slowly  the  day  passed,  and  night  still  found  us  on 
our  old  camp  ground.  Wrapping  our  blankets  around  us  we 
laid  down  to  sleep.  Hardly,  however,  had  we  done  so,  ere  a 
most  violent  rain  storm  arose.  You  can  well  judge  our  con 
dition  at  this  time.  But  the  storm  gradually  abating,  we  were 
enabled  to  obtain  some  sleep. 

At  2  o'clock  on  Sunday  morning  we  were  all  aroused  and 
ordered  under  arms.  "Shortly  afterwards  we  moved  off  in  the 
direction  of  Loudon.  The  road  was  very  bad,  and  the  morn 
ing  being  quite  dark,  made  it  extremely  hard  for  us  to  get 
along. 

We  arrived  at  Loudon  shortly  before  daybreak.  We  moved 
at  once  to  the  front,  but,  before  reaching  it,  the  order  was 
countermanded,  and  we  fell  back  to  the  heights  on  the  banks 
of  the  Tennessee.  There  we  stacked  arms,  and  awaited  the 
orders  of  our  officers.  It  soon  became  apparent  that  it  was  the 
purpose  of  Gen.  Burnside  to  fall  back.  This  was  evidenced  by 
our  movements,  as  well  as  those  of  other  divisions,  and  the 
putting  in  position  of  our  artillery.  We  could  distinctly  hear, 
if  not  see,  the  rebel  troops  crossing  the  pontoon  bridge.  Slowly 
our  forces  fell  back,  while  our  skirmishers  engaged  those  of  the 
enemy.  The  sharp  rattle  of  musketry  and  the  loud  roar  of 
cannon  told  us  the  enemy  were  pressing  closely  upon  the  heels 
of  our  retiring  army.  As  the  rebels  emerged  from  the  woods, 
the  scene  was  exciting  in  the  highest. 

The  1st  brigade  of  our  division  was  sent  forward  and  de 
ployed  as  skirmishers  to  cover  the  retreat  of  the  army,  while 
our  brigade  (the  2d)  was  held  in  reserve  to  support  the  1st 
should  occasion  require  it.  For  neariy  the  whole  day,  our 
skirmishers  held  the  rebel  advance  in  check,  when  it  no  longer 
being  prudent  to  remain,  the  order  came  to  fall  back.  Throw 
ing  skirmishers  to  our  left,  we  slowly  moved  back  to  Lenoir. 

Here  the  men  were  furnished  with  five  days'  rations.  With 
barely  time  to  cook  their  coffee,  the  line  of  march  was  again 
taken  up.  Our  brigade  followed  immediately  in  the  rear  of 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  435 

Benjamin's  battery  of  twenty  pound  gnus.  Of  course  the 
laborous  duty  of  helping  it  along  devolved  on  us.  The  duty 
was  very  severe,  for  the  horses  were  nearly  worn  clown,  and 
the  roads  were  in  an  awful  condition.  The  whole  long  night, 
amid  the  rain  and  dark,  the  poor  soldiers  toiled  and  labored  as 
men  never  did  before.  The  cannon  were  dragged  over  the 
steep  hills  and  deep  gullies  by  ropes,  piece  by  piece,  and  when 
daylight  appeared  we  discovered  that  we  were  only  three 
miles  from  Lenoir— having  made  only  three  miles  in  twelve 
hours.  But  we  had  gone  over  the  worst  part  of  the  road,  and 
with  the  assistance  of  some  mules  our  progress  was  more  rapid. 
We  succeeded  in  reaching  the  point  aimed  at  in  time — and  just 
in  time.  The  battery  was  saved  thanks  to  the  gallant  men 
who  so  nobly  clung  to  it.  l^he  excellent  service  it  rendered 
afterwards  fully  compensated  for  all  we  did. 

Few  will  forget  that  memorable  night.  How  earnestly  all 
toiled  to  save  the  battery,  and  how  well  we  remember  the  deep 
solicitude  of  the  commanding  officers  for  its  safety.  The  men 
were  wet,  tired  and  foot-sore  if  not  heart-sore,  but  they  never 
faltered  or  yielded  to  the  discouragements  surrounding  them. 
They  bravely  struggled  on,  and  had  the  gratifying  consolation 
of  saving  the  battery.  What  added  interest  to  the  occasion, 
was  the  constant  crack  of  the  rifle,  with  now  and  then  rapid 
volleys  of  musketry,  intermingled  with  the  hideous  yells  of  the 
toe. 

Monday,  the  10th  of  November,  the  anniversary  of  our  de 
parture  from  Harrisburg,  was  destined  to  be  another  important 
era  in  our  history.  For  on  this  day  was  fought  the  battle  of 
Campbell  Station.  To  reach  this  point  it  was  we  worked  so 
hard  with  the  battery,  in  order  to  obtain  possession  of  the  road 
leading  to  Kingston,  so  that  the  enemy  could  not  get  on  our 
front  and  flank.  And  we  did  not  reach  it  any  too  soon,  for  it 
was  not  long  afterwards  the  enemy's  skirmishers  came  swarm 
ing  down  the  road.  Our  division,  under  command  of  Col. 
Hartranft,  was  in  position  on  this  road,  and  its  peculiar  duty 
was  to  hold  the  enemy  in  check  until  the  entire  army  at  Lenoir 
was  up.  It  is  enough  to  say  the  order  was  obeyed. 

In  the  meanwhile  Burnside  had  taken  up  his  line  of  defence, 
and  as  the  troops  came  up  he  placed  them  in  position.  Our 
division  was  on  the  extreme  left.  The  enemy  pressed  closely 
on  the  heels  of  our  forces,  shouting  fiercely  as  they  advanced. 
Their  skirmishers  approached  to  within  a  few  hundred  yards 


436      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

of  our  line  of  battle.  Soon  in  line  of  battle  their  infantry 
advanced,  and  although  our  batteries  opened  with  rapidity  and 
precision,  yet  they  moved  on  until  they  reached  a  deep  ravine 
in  our  front.  Our  skirmishers  along  the  whole  line  were  en 
gaging  the  enemy's  skirmishers.  Soon  the  rebels  put  in 
position  their  "White  Horse  battery,"  which  rained  shell  and 
solid  shot  upon  us.  However  our  guns  soon  silenced  it.  But 
other  positions  were  taken  up,  and  other  batteries  joined  it,  so 
that  the  artillery  jluel  was  quite  lively.  Their  infantry  was 
eagerly  seeking  to  turn  our  flanks,  but  our  position  was  such 
an  admirable  one,  that  it  was  no  easy  task  for  the  enemy  to 
succeed.  Toward  evening  the  army  fell  back  to  another  height. 
This  was  done  in  excellent  order —without  haste  or  confusion. 
Our  regiment  which  covered  the  flank  of  our  division,  and  was 
deployed  as  skirmishers  along  the  edge  of  a  w^oods,  fell  slowly 
back  by  the  left  flank.  As  they  thus  fell  back  the  enemy  com 
menced  a  vigorous  shelling  upon  them,  many  of  the  shells  fall 
ing  and  exploding  in  their  very  midst. 

When  the  height  was  reached,  we  again  were  placed  in 
position,  and  awaited  the  further  movements  of  the  enemy. 
We  did  not  have  to  wait  long,  for  on  a  high  commanding  hill 
to  our  left,  the  enemy  in  strong  force  appeared.  To  plant 
three  twenty-pound  guns,  and  shell  the  hill  was  the  work  of  a 
moment.  That  hill  was  soon  cleared,  and  it  relieved  the 
anxiety  of  all.  However,  as  soon  as  the  firing  ceased  the 
rebels  again  appeared. 

But  it  was  getting  dark,  and  we  were  glad  of  it,  for  it  de 
prived  the  enemy  of  the  opportunity  to  outflank  us,  which  so 
many  feared.  The  order  to  retire  came  as  darkness  was  settling 
over  us.  Stopping  a  short  distance  beyond  the  field  of  battle, 
to  obtain  ammunition,  we  took  up  the  line  of  march  for  Knox- 
ville. 

I  have  not  here  attempted  to  give  a  description  of  the  battle 
of  Campbell  Station.  I  have  merely  referred  to  the  general 
movements — without  going  into  details.  Time  will  not  permit 
an  extended  reference  just  now.  It  was,  however,  the  most 
beautiful  battle — if  the  term  beautiful  is  allowable — we  ever 
witnessed.  Every  movement  of  the  enemy  as  well  as  of  our  own 
was  spread  out  boldly  before  the  naked  eye.  The  line  of  skir 
mishers,  the  line  of  battle,  advancing  steadily  and  compactly, 
the  position  of  batteries,  now  limbering  and  rapidly  dashing  to 
some  other  point,  opened  out  before  us  like  some  grand  panor- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      437 

ama.  The  bursting  shells,  the  loud  roar  of  artillery  and  the 
quick  rushing  clash  of  small  arms  only  heightened  the  interest 
of  the  occasion.  It  was,  indeed,  a  grand  spectacle,  which  is 
not  often  witnessed,  and  once  seen  can  never  be  forgotten. 

I  will  not  stop  to  speak  of  the  long  night's  march;  the 
streams  we  crossed,  waist  deep  ;  the  terrible  roads  and  the 
deep,  deep  mud.  It  was  a  hard  and  wearisome  march.  Some 
of  the  men  were  barefooted,  and  all  were  tired  and  much  ex 
hausted.  This  was  the  third  night  we  had  no  sleep,  and  the 
want  of  it  told  fearfully  upon  us.  Many  would  fall  asleep  the 
moment  the  column  halted  ;  and  as  for  the  officers  mounted,  it 
was  nowise  strange  to  see  their  horses  plodding  along  with 
their  riders  fast  asleep. 

'We  reached  Knoxville  early  in  the  morning.  After  enjoying 
a  short  rest,  the  division  was  assigned  its  position  in  the  defence 
of  Knoxville.  A  skirmish  line  was  immediately  established  in 
our  front,  and  the  work  of  fortifying  our  position  commenced. 
There  was  much  to  do,  but  the  men  went  at  it  with  that  spirit 
and  activity  which  has  ever  characterized  them. 

The  enemy  had  been  to  severely  punished  at  Campbell  Sta 
tion  that  they  did  not  follow  us  with  their  usual  vigor,  and  thus 
time  was  afforded  us  to  strengthen  our  position.  Our  skirmish 
line,  too,  was  so  strengthened  that  they  could  only  dislodge  it 
by  an  advance  in  force.  In  this  way  we  were  enabled  to  so 
fortify  ourselves  that  when  they  did  drive  in  our  skirmish  line 
on  the  left,  we  were  in  a  condition  to  receive  an  assault  when 
ever  the  enemy  should  see  fit  to  deliver  it. 

When  first  we  fell  back  to  Knoxville,  I  confess,  the  prospect 
of  holding  out  against  Longstreet  was  far  from  favorable,  but 
as  each  day  passed,  and  our  position  was  strengthened  and 
supplies  accumulated,  so  did  our  confidence  increase  in  our 
ability  to  maintain  ourselves.  True,  the  duty  each  soldier  was 
called  upon  to  perform  was  of  the  severest  character,  yet  it  was 
cheerfully  performed  ;  u  school  kept  all  the  time" — there  were 
no  recesses,  no  hours  for  play.  If  the  men  were  not  on  the 
skirmish  line,  they  were  in  the  trenches,  or  working  on  the 
fortifications. 

But  here  I  must  stop.  The  letter  is  already  too  long,  and 
besides  I  am  informed  that  your  valuable  correspondent,  T.  11. 
P.,  has  written  a  very  full  history  of  the  siege,  which  I  am  sure 
will  prove  more  interesting  than  anything  I  could  possibly  wrjte. 

Yours,  etc. 


438      HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 


CHAPTER    IX. 

Foraging — Address  from  Ladies'  Loyal  League  at  Norristown, 
Pa. — Reply  by  Major  Bolton — Building  pontoons — Laying 
the  bridge — Re-enlistment  proposed — Newspaper  extracts 
and  correspondence — Description  of  the  Winter  campaign- 
Character  and  efficiency  of  the  Union  and  Rebel  armies  con 
trasted — Material  composing  the  9th  Army  Corps  and  the 
23d  Army  Corps — Return  of  officers  from  home. 

For  the  first  few  days  of  the  51st  P.  V.'s  being  at 
Lenoir  it  was  highly  necessary  to  send  out  all  the 
teams  into  the  surrounding  country  to  forage  for 
supplies  for  the  use  of  the  team,  artillery,  and 
officers'  horses.  A  detail  of  five  or  six  men  to  each 
wagon  was  made  to  accompany  them  as  guards, 
and  to  assist  in  loading.  They  started  early  in  the 
mornings  and  returned  at  night;  the  wagons  well 
laden  with  corn,  etc.,  and  occasionally  a  hog  or  a 
sheep  was  stowed  away  beneath  the  load  to  prevent 
detection,  as  that  kind  of  foraging  was  strictly  for 
bidden. 

The  greatest  trouble  that  the  regiment  now  expe 
rienced  was  in  the  want  of  clothing,  although  on 
scant  half  rations  the  men  could,  would,  and  DID  steal 
enough  to  keep  them  from  starving;  but  clothing 
could  only  be  obtained  through  the  regular  channel, 
namely,  the  quartermaster's  department. 

The  nights  were  now  becoming  wintry  cold  ;  and 
so  much  rain  falling,  the  men  suffered  terribly  for 
shoes,  overcoats,  and  blankets.  Major  Wm.  J.  Bolton 
received  an  address  from  the  "Ladies'  Loyal  League," 
of  Montgomery  county,  Pa.,  to  the  51st  P.  V.,  and 
was  read  on  dress  parade,  two  days  before  the  regi- 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  489 

merit  left  Loudon.  It  was  received  by  a  hearty 
amen  !  by  all  the  officers  and  men  who  were  present. 
The  Major,  who  was  as  strong  a  Union  man  as  he 
was  a  brave  and  true  soldier,  replied  in  a  spirited 
style  that  mast  have  made  a  few  of  those  hide  their 
heads  in  shame  who  had  the  audacity  to  rob  the  51st 
P.  V.  of  their  hard  earned  laurels,  or  at  least  endeav 
ored  to  tarnish  its  bright  escutcheon.  Major  Bolton 
cared  very  little  for  himself,  but  when  the  regiment 
was  assailed  he  hissed  in  their  ears:  "Don't  dare 
tread  on  me  !"  and  he  possessed  the  right  kind  of 
courage  to  carry  that  warning  through.  It  must 
not  be  considered  that  the  major  was  fighting  a  po 
litical  battle,  for  he  honored  all  men's  political  opin 
ions  that  were  of  a  loyal  character ;  for  there  were 
Democrats  that  held  high  positions  in  the  army  that 
were  enthusiastic  Union  men,  commonly  called  War 
Democrats.  Such  persons,  in  civil  or  military  life, 
were  both  honored  and  appreciated  by  the  Major; 
but  it  was  the  Copperhead  wing,  or  the  peace-at  any- 
price  party;  the  men  who  "threw  up  their  sweaty 
night-caps,"  and  wore  a  smile  of  satisfaction  every 
time  that  victory  perched  on  the  banners  of  the  rebel 
confederacy  and  the  starry  flag  of  the  Union  was 
trailed  in  the  dust,  or  when  a  fresh  batch  of  battle- 
scarred  veterans  of  the  Union  army  were  consigned 
to  those  pens  worse  than  the  Black  Hole  of  Calcutta 
— I  mean  Anderson  ville,  Belle-Isle,  and  Libby  Prison. 
These,  these  were  the  men  that  Major  Bolton  was 
fighting  both  at  home  and  in  the  field. 

The   following   is   Major   Bolton's    reply   to   the 
Women's  Loyal  League  of  Montgomery  county  : 

"  LADIES  : — Your  congratulatory  address  to  the  officers  and 
men  of  the  51st  Regt.  P.  V.  was  received,  and  read  before  the 


440     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

regiment  on  dress-parade,  near  London,  Tenn.,  October  27th. 
In  behalf  of  the  regiment,  I  would  return  to  you  their  heartfelt 
thanks  for  your  kind  and  friendly  consideration  of  them,  who 
have  perilled  their  lives  and  health  for  their  country's  honor. 
While  you  acknowledge  our  many  deeds,  the  hardships  and 
toils  incident  to  the  soldier's  life,  there  are  others,  as  you  have 
truly  said,  in  your  community,  who  call  themselves  men,  who 
are  base  enough  to  rob  the  soldier  of  his  well-earned  fame,  and 
place  him  lower  than  the  common  slave.  They  don't  stop  at 
that,  they  use  every  and  any  means  to  embarrass  the  Govern 
ment  that  protects  and  feeds  them ;  anything,  I  say,  except  the 
more  manly  part  of  taking  arms  to  destroy  our  country,  to  de 
base  the  broad  Stripes  and  bright  Stars  in  the  glory  of  national 
ensigns,  and  to  render  the  proud  title  of  American  citizens,  'a 
hissing  and  a  scorn  among  the  nations.'  Do  they  stop  there  ? 
No,  they  publicly  proclaim  in  your  streets,  and  in  your  public 
places,  and  do  it  boastingly — men  who  are  known,  and  of 
whom  better  things  should  be  expected,  that  the  51st  Regt. 
P.  V.  has  never  done  anything — a  regiment  commanded  and 
led  by  one  of  your  noblest  and  bravest  citizens.  Ladies,  you 
have  addressed  the  wrong  organization,  you  have  given  honor 
when  honor  is  not  due,  or  those  men  are  malicious  liars,  and 
must  account  for  their  vile  slander.  Must  twenty-rive  long- 
months,  travelling  thousands  of  miles  by  sea  and  laud,  footsore 
and  wornout,  and  the  participation  in  a  dozen  hard-fought 
battles,  be  a  blank  in  our  history  ?  Must  the  rich  blood,  shed 
by  your  own  townsmen,  be  lost  in  vain  ? 

u  Ah  !  let  the  cripples  who  still  survive — let  the  disfigured 
forms  and  haggard  faces  speak.  Oh  more  !  let  the  poor  widows 
and  orphans  ot  your  town  and  county  answer  that  infamous 
charge.  Ah  !  still  more.  Let  those  noble  spirits,  who  sleep 
in  honored  graves,  beneath  the  pines  of  Roanoke.  the  sea- 
washed  shores  of  Carolina,  the  sacred  soil  of  Virginia,  the 
mountain  tops  and  valleys  of  Maryland,  the  beautiful  blue  grass 
region  of  old  Kentucky,  and  the  far-distant  magnolia  of  Missis 
sippi,  let  their  noble  spirits  rise  from  their  green  mounds  and 
answer  that  unkind  charge. 

"As  soldiers,  as  lovers  of  our  country,  we  claim,  we  ask  for 
no  merit.  It  is  our  unflinching  duly  as  fieemen  and  true  lovers 
of  human  rights,  to  defend  our  common  country,  right,  or 
icrong.  He  who  would  not  fight  for  his  country  and  stand  by 
it  deserves  none.  We  are  fighting  for  one  Union,  and  one 
people  to  defend  it,  and  as  God  is  just,  we  will  accomplish  our 
end,  or  die  in  the  attempt. 

1 '  Ladies  of  the  Women's  Loyal  League  !  Women  of  America ! 
you  have  done  much,  your  devotion  to  your  country  and  your 
countrymen,  has  been  unbounded.  You  could  be  found  upon 
the  battle-field,  bandaging  the  ghastly  wounds  and  moisten 
ing  the  parched  lips  of  the  fainting  soldier.  In  the  hospital 
you  could  be  found  administering  to  your  dying  countrymen, 
and  speaking  words  of  kindness  to  him  in  his  last  earthly 
moments.  Yet  there  is  still  more  for  you  to  do.  A  great  re 
sponsibility  rests  upon  your  shoulders,  but  you  are  able  for  the 
task. 


OP   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  441 

"  War  is  a  necessary  evil  !  it  may,  and  it,  will  come  upon  us 
again.  This  generation  is  fast  passing  away.  War,  disease, 
toils,  and  hardships  have  weakened  the  nation.  We  are  but 
passing  shadows  ;  soon  we  will  have  fought  our  last  battle  ; 
soon  must  the  youth  of  our  land  take  our  places,  than  how 
necessary  it  is  for  you  to  teach  them  in  their  early  years  to 
love  their  country,  to  fight  and  defend  her  right  or  wrong, 
never  to  fear  death  in  a  just  cause,  but  rather  fear  dishonor. 
Teach  them  what  treason  and  treachery  have  brought  upon 
this  country  ;  point  them  to  the  infamous  deeds  of  Davis,  Lee, 
Cobb,  Yancey,  Mason,  and  a  host  of  others ;  warn  them  from 
following  such  a  course  ;  imbue  in  their  youthful  minds  to  be 
true  to  their  country  in  all  cases  ;  to  submit  to  the  will  of  the 
majority  ;  not  to  commit  one  act,  by  word  or  deed,  against 
their  country  or  government,  or  otherwise  they  will  he  sure  to 
go  down  to  dishonorable  graves.  For  noble 'examples  point 
them  to  a  Banks,  a  Burnside,  a  Butler,  a  Lyon,  and  the  gal 
lant,  the  noble,  the  patriotic  Gen.  Jesse  L.  Reno,  whose  brave 
heart  dared  to  lead  where  brave  men  dared  to  follow. 

"  And  when  this  cruel,  this  unjust,  this  unholy  war,  waged 
against  one  of  the  best  governments  ever  formed  by  man,  or 
the  sun  ever  shone  upon,  by  a  portion  of  her  unworthy  people 
in  human  shape,  shall  have  been  ended,  the  bells  of  the  nation 
shall  chime  forth  their  sweet  peals  of  music  from  the  Canadas 
to  the  Gulf,  from  ocean  to  ocean,  proclaiming  to  the  whole 
world  that  right  has  triumphed  over  treason,  and  that  our  land 
has  been  blessed  with  peace.  For  the  noble  self-sacrificing 
part  you  have  taken  must  gladden  the  hearts  of  the  philan 
thropists,  and  in  after  times  will  challenge  the  admiration  of  the 
historian,  and  the  wonder  of  posterity. 

"And  when  your  countrymen  shall  have  returned  home  to 
the  scenes  of  their  childhood  and  youth,  and  to  the  fond  affec 
tions  of  their  relatives  and  friends,  know  ye,  then,  that  they 
have  returned  with  the  full  knowledge  and  bright  consolation 
that  they  have,  with  their  blood,  the  lives  of  their  companions, 
and  their  strong  arms,  restored  this  government,  and  with  the 
regeneration  she  will  stand  forth  purer,  stronger,  nobler  than 
ever  ;  and  we  will  return  with  a  flag  pure  and  untarnished, 
and  indeed  the  flag  of  the  free,  or  return  not  at  all. 

"Thanking  you  heartily  for  your  kind  remembrance  and 
notice  of  us  in  our  feeble  efforts  to  restore  our  country,  we  can 
assure  you  that  the  reputation  of  the  Old  Keystone  State  has 
not,  and  shall  not  suffer  at  our  hands,  and  with  a  humble, 
fervent  prayer  that  the  God  of  battles,  the  Supreme  Ruler  and 
Director  of  all  good,  will  achieve  to  our  arms  a  speedy  and  a 
lasting  peace— one  that  will  not  degrade  us  before  the  world, 
but  make  us  one  and  all,  happy  with  the  thought— domestic 
insurrections— bogus  neutrality,  '  Don't  dare  tread  on  me  ! ' 
"  1  am,  Ladies, 

"  Most  truly  and  respectfully  yours, 

"W.  JORDON  BOLTON, 

' '  M(tjnr  Oommn  rt  cling  Rf-ff^  t. " 
20 


442      HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

On  the  3d  of  November  an  order  came  into  carnp 
for  a  detail  of  all  the  carpenters  in  the  regiment  to 
report  at  the  saw-mill  of  Mr.  Lenoir,  proprietor  of 
"Lenoir  station."  This  detail  was  immediately  fur 
nished,  and  the  men  set  to  work  in  getting  out  lum 
ber  to  make  pontoon  boats  to  put  a  bridge  across 
the  Holston  river,  about  one  hundred  yards  west  of 
where  the  51st  P.  V.  was  encamped,  for  the  purpose 
of  having  more  extensive  foraging  ground.  That 
side  of  the  river  was  reported  wealthy  in  forage  of 
all  kinds,  which  was  fully  confirmed  by  the  loyal 
refugees  who  had  resided  there,  but  were  forced  to 
be  on  the  side  of  the  river  with  the  Union  army  for 
protection,  as  the  rebels  were  conscripting  and  im 
pressing  everything  in  pants  that  could  handle  a 
gun,  whether  loyal  or  disloyal.  Flat  boats  of  small 
capacity  were  at  the  Lenoir  ferry,  and  a  few  men  of 
the  51st  P.  Y.  had  ventured  over  to  the  opposite 
side,  and  seen  enough  to  confirm  the  statement. 
While  the  carpenters  were  building  the  boats  a  detail 
of  about  thirty  men  were  put  to  work  under  the 
command  of  Capt.  Bisbing,  who  was  acting  major 
of  the  regiment  at  that  time,  to  excavate  and  level 
the  ground,  so  wagons  could  approach  and  get  on 
and  off  the  bridge,  when  laid.  This  fatigue  duty 
was  continued  day  and  night,  and  was  not  completed 
till  after  the  force  had  been  increased  to  over  one 
hundred  men,  which  was  the  day  before  the  boats 
were  ready  to  be  laid.  Eight  days  were  occupied  in 
digging  away  the  bank  of  the  river,  which  was  about 
fifteen  feet  above  water  level.  This  cut  was  about 
fourteen  feet  deep,  twenty  wide  at  the  top  and  fifteen 
at  the  bottom,  and  about  four  hundred  feet  long  from 
the  water  to  the  entrance  of  the  cut.  This  job  was 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  443 

all  done  by  the  51st  P.  V.  alone,  and  non-commis 
sioned  officers  as  well  as  the  privates  took  their 
turn  with  the  shovel  and  pick  ;  even  the  commis 
sioned  officers  did  not  stand  idle  and  look  on,  but 
took  the  pick  or  shovel,  and  evinced  their  interest 
in  the  work  by  doing  a  share  of  it.  By  12  o'clock 
at  night  of  the  llth,  the  work  was  completed  and 
the  boats  also,  and  hauled  to  the  river.  Everything 
now  being  ready  for  putting  down  the  bridge,  the 
men  all  returned  to  camp,  excepting  a  few  who  were 
left  as  pickets,  to  enjoy  a  few  hours  rest.  About  4 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  12th,  the  whole  division 
was  aroused  by  the  reveille,  and  the  men  being 
ignorant  of  the  cause  of  its  being  beaten,  sprang  to 
their  feet,  and  out  of  their  tents  to  inquire  "  What's 
up,"  but  as  nothing  unusual  appeared,  most  of  them 
laid  down  again,  for  they  were  tired  out  with  hard 
work  of  the  last  eight  days  and  nights.  At  5  A.  M. 
Sergt.  Fizorie,  who  was  acting  sergeant-major  of  the 
regiment,  went  around  to  all  the  companies  and 
notified  them  to  get  up  and  get  their  breakfast,  as 
they  only  had  half  an  hour  to  get  it  in.  At  six 
o'clock,  which  was  scarce  daylight,  the  "assembly" 
was  beaten,  and  the  regiment  formed  on  the  color 
line,  stacked  arms,  and  "broke  ranks,"  with  the 
injunction  to  be  ready  to  "fall  in  at  a  moment's  no 
tice."  Soon  an  order  came  in  for  Maj.  Bolton  to 
furnish  a  detail  of  one  hundred  men,  fully  armed  and 
equipped,  to  cross  the  river  to  protect  the  engineer 
corps  and  workmen  in  laying  the  bridge.  The  detail 
was  put  under  the  command  of  Capt.  Bisbing,  and 
after  leaving  the  camp  there  was  not  over  ten  men, 
except  non-commissioned  officers,  left  in  camp. 
Nothing  of  special  interest  occurred  while  the  bridge 


444     HISTORY   OF  THE   FIFTY-FIKST   REGIMENT 

was  being  laid,  as  the  rebels  did  not  show  themselves 
to  interfere  in  the  work,  and  by  night  the  bridge 
was  completed,  and  Capt.  Bisbing  with  his  com 
mand  returned  to  carnp  in  safety.  Eations  now  con 
tinued  scarce  and  the  men  complained  bitterly  of  the 
way  they  were  treated — nearly  naked,  more  than 
half-starved,  and  worn  out  with  fatigue,  and  "  regular 
duty."  Below  we  give  an  extract  of  a  private  letter, 
dated  from  Lenoir: 


"  *  *  *  *  *  *  Yesterday  being  the  last  of  the  month, 
we  were  mustered  again  for  two  months'  pay.  ***** 
It  is  lair  to  presume  that  we  will  be  paid  off  in  a  few  days.  I 
hope  so,  for  we  are  suffering  very  much  for  tobacco  and  some 
thing  to  eat.  *  *  *  *  Since  I  last  wrote  to  you  we  have 
been  knocked  about  from  post  to  pillar — one  day  we  drive  the 
rebels,  and  the  next  they  drive  us — and  they  keep  us  on  the 
watch  both  day  and  night.  Day  before  yesterday  our  cavalry 
had  a  fight  at  Leiper's  ferry,  on  the  Holston  river,  six  miles 
from  here.  The  rebs  whipped  them,  and  we  sent  about  forty 
or  fifty  men  up  there  out  of  our  regiment.  They  are  still  there, 
I  believe*  holding  their  ground.  In  the  middle  of  that  night 
(Friday)  the  long  roll  was  beaten  ;  the  rain  pouied  in  torrents, 
and  the  night  was  tremendous  dark,  yet  we  all  fell  in  line  of 
battle,  expecting  a  midnight  attack;  but  after  waiting  an  hour 
or  so,  we  found  that  we  could  go  back  to  our  tents,  as  nothing 
serious  was  known  to  exist — but  we  had  to  hold  ourselves  in 
readiness  in  case  we  were  wanted.  *  *  *  *  Bnrnside  has 
removed  his  headquarters  back  to  Knoxville.  I  don't  see  how 
he  is  to  keep  us  here,  for  there  is  no  way  of  getting  supplies  to 
us  only  by  wagons.  Some  of  the  regiments  are  on  one-quarter 
rations,  and  we  are  on  less  than  half  ratiors  We  drew  half 
rations  of  coffee,  one-third  rations  of  sugar,  (i.  e.,  one  day's.) 
to  last  three,  half  a  spoonful  of  salt,  a  one  pound  loaf  of  heavy 
bread  for  three  days,  with  a  little  piece  of  fresh  beef.  I  am 
afraid  we  will  have  to  fall  back  to  Kentucky,  or  pitch  into  the 
rebels  in  earnest,  and  try  to  get  railroad  communication  opened 
to  Chattanooga,  and  then  we  may  get  a  little  more  to  eat.  If 
Bill  Bolton  had  his  way,  he  would  either  have  something  for 
us  to  eat  or  get  us  a  devil  of  a  licking  in  trying  for  it." 

While  preparing  to  lay  the  pontoons  an  offer  was 
made  to  the  Ninth  Corps  of  $402  as  a  bounty  to  each 
man  that  would  re-enlist.  This  was  not  received  at 
first  very  favorably  by  the  51st  P.  V.,  for  they  were 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      445 

afraid  that  to  re-enlist  was  only  making  it  appear 
that  they  were  satisfied  with  their  treatment  in  this 
Department,  in  which  they  expected  they  would  be  re 
tained  if  they  re-enlisted.  The  order  was  thoroughly 
discussed,  but  not  a  man  had  expressed  a  willingness 
to  put  down  his  name.  The  first  mention  made  of 
re-enlistment  was  on  the  30th  of  October,  1863,  but 
attracted  very  little  attention  and  still  less  of  credit, 
for  it  had  not  been  given  officially  to  the  51st  P.  V. 
The  circumstances  attending  it  began  to  die  out  for  the 
need  of  explanations  ;  there  being  nothing  definite 
known  about  it,  it  was  looked  upon  as  "  camp  talk." 
The  following  letters  to  the  Defender  give  a  his 
tory  of  the  doings  of  the  51st,  from  the  laying  of  the 
bridge  up  to  date : 

CAMP  OF  THE  51  ST  REGT.  P.  V. 

December  22d,  1863. 

"  Corporal  Longstreet,"  as  our  boys  call  him,  lias  been  med 
dling  with  our  affairs  here  now  for  the  last  four  or  five  weeks, 
so  that  our  mail  operations  have  been  somewhat  interrupted, 
and  leaves  me  with  several  weeks'  correspondence  to  forward 
to  your  valuable  sheet.  I  shall  not  attempt  to  apologize,  for  I 
am  satisfied  that  your  many  readers  know,  long  ere  this,  that 
a  cog  had  broken  out  of  the  wheel  of  our  marching  machine, 
and  we  were  shut  up  in  the  city  of  Knoxville  to  make  good  the 
damage  done.  Since  I  wrote  my  last  to  you,  the  51st  has 
passed  through  an  ordeal  that  far  surpasses  anything  that  took 
place  in  the  "  iron  days  of  '76,"  or,  "  the  days  that  tried  men's 
souls."  All  that  our  forefathers  suffered  in  those  days  the 
51st  have  borne,  and  suffered  with  tenfold  more  severity. 
Hunger,  cold,  fatigue,  and  mental  anguish  has  far  exceeded 
anything  in  the  annals  of  American  Revolutionary  history  ; 
but  we  are  amply  repaid  for  our  sufferings  by  a  most  glorious 
victory  achieved  over  the  legion  of  rebels  who  threatened  at 
one  time  to  overwhelm  us  by  largely  superior  numbers,  who 
had  besieged  us  for  eighteen  days  in  the  city  of  Knoxville. 
Our  work  began  at  the  completion  of  the  pontoon  bridge,  laid 
at  Lenoir. 


446     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIKST    REGIMENT 

On  Thursday,  12th  of  November,  we  finished  laying  the 
pontoon,  and  our  regiment  was  engaged  all  day  and  night  in 
cutting  down  the  river  bank  for  a  road,  so  that  our  wagon  train 
could  cross  the  river  for  forage.  The  next  day,  Friday,  was  a 
day  of  rest,  but  it  was  not  to  continue,  for,  as  I  told  you  in  my 
last  letter,  the  Ninth  Corps  must  be  forever  on  the  move,  if  it 
is  only  for  the  sake  of  moving  ;  but  this  time  it  was  an  impor 
tant  movement. 

On  Saturday  morning,  the  14th  ult.,  at  half  past  three  o'clock, 
orders  were  issued  to  be  ready  to  strike  tents  at  a  moment's 
notice.  Soon  our  camp  was  the  scene  of  busy  preparation — 
breaking  up  camp  and  the  putting  in  order  all  the  paraphernalia 
of  war — knapsacks  packed,  breakfast  over,  and  everything 
accomplished  in  an  incredibly  short  space  of  time.  At  6  o'clock 
A.  M.  tents  were  struck,  and  we  immediately  formed  on  the  color 
side  and  stacked  arms,  and  were  dismissed  by  Maj.  Bolton, 
with  the  injunction  to  be  ready  to  fall  in  at  a  moment's  notice. 
A  cold  rain  had  set  in  about  daybreak,  and  it  continued 
throughout  that  day  and  night.  Our  situation  was  of  a  char 
acter  not  to  be  envied,  but,  on  the  contrary,  to  be  pitied  ;  for 
there  we  sat  until  dark,  in  the  pitiless  peltings  of  a  cold  north 
east  winter  rain,  saturated  to  the  skin  and  hungry.  At  dark 
we  broke  the  line  of  stacks,  and  again  pitched  our  tents  for 
the  nonce,  with  the  orders  as  usual  to  be  ready  to  fall  in  at 
a  moment's  notice,  but  we  might  have  remained  out  in  the  rain 
and  cold  for  all  the  comfort  we  derived  from  our  wet  and 
cheerless  tents;  for  with  wet  clothing,  (none  of  us  had  any 
change,)  our  blankets  dripping,  streams  of  water  running  under 
the  tents,  and  a  piercing  cold  wind  driving  the  rain  completely 
through  our  little  shelter  tents,  made  it  rather  too  uninviting 
for  the  god  of  sleep,  Morpheus,  to  dwell  with  us  that  night, 
consequently  very  few,  if  any,  got  any  sleep  at  all,  although 
we  had  none  for  the  previous  forty  eight  hours,  on  account 
of  working  at  the  bridge.  On  Sunday  morning,  the  15th,  at 
2  o'clock,  we  struck  tents  again,  amid  a  most  drenching  rain, 
and  started  off  on  a  march  to  London.  The  night  being  dark 
and  rainy,  the  roads  rugged,  and  knee-deep  with  mud — the 
mud  being  of  an  unctuous  nature,  it  was  not  an  uncommon 
thing  for  a  dozen  at  a  time  to  slip  down  and  find  themselves 
floundering  in  the  mire  like  a  fresh-caught  fish  on  the  rivulet's 
bank.  We  reached  our  destination  at  dawn  of  day,  and  to  our 
surprise  we  found  that  Longstreet  had  laid  a  pontoon  bridge 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      447 

across  the  Tennessee  river,  about  seven  miles  below  London, 
and  had  crossed  over  in  overwhelming  force.  Skirmishers 
were  immediately  deployed,  and  the  measures  necessary  been 
taken  for  a  battle.  A  few  minutes  after  the  deployment,  the 
enemy's  skirmishers  were  met,  and  heavy  skirmishing  ensued, 
but  as  they  pressed  on  us  in  such  heavy  odds,  we  gradually 
fell  back  in  good  order,  and  with  very  trifling  loss.  About 
10  o'clock  A.  M.  the  51st  deployed  as  skirmishers,  and  skirm 
ished  over  hill  and  dale  to  within  a  short  distance  of  Lenoir, 
where  we  arrived  a  little  before  dark.  We  then  halted  to  draw 
rations,  many  of  us  not  having  tasted  a  morsel  of  food  since 
the  day  before.  At  our  camping-ground  where  we  made  the 
halt,  we  found  the  wagon  and  ambulance  trains  were  all  stuck 
fast  in  the  mud  in  the  rear,  which  was  blocked  up  for  a  great 
distance  ahead,  retarding  our  retreat  very  much,  as  the  enemy 
would  take  every  advantage  of  our  predicament.  The  rebels 
were  close  on  our  heels,  and  were  doing  their  utmost  to  flank 
us,  so  as  to  cut  off  our  retreat  to  Knoxville.  They  had  got 
near  enough  to  fire  on  our  old  camp  at  the  teams,  that  were 
there  waiting  to  move  on.  While  at  Lenoir,  the  spirits  of  the 
men  comprising  the  2d  Division  were  raised  to  the  highest 
pitch  of  enthusiasm  by  the  appearance  of  Col.  Hartranft.  His 
presence  seemed  to  inspire  every  man  with  unlimited  confi 
dence,  for  let  us  get  into  any  tight  place,  if  "old  Johnny," 
as  the  boys  call  him,  is  only  with  us,  we  all  feel  that  we  are 
going  to  be  "  put  through"  at  least  honorably,  if  not  as  com 
fortably  as  may  be  desired.  To  our  gratification  he  assumed 
command  of  the  2d  Division,  and  then  we  feared  no  blunder  ; 
and  we  also  knew  we  had  a  soldier  that  could  and  would  do 
his  duty,  and  make  every  other  man  do  the  same. 

As  soon  as  we  drew  our  rations  we  started  for  Knoxville,  at 
(5  P.  M.  Our  progress  was  slow,  for  up  to  0  o'clock  A.  M.  of 
Monday,  we  had  only  made  three  miles  ;  such  was  the  bad 
condition  of  the  roads  that  wagons,  ambulances,  and  the  artil 
lery  had  all  to  be  extricated  by  the  aid  of  the  soldiers  pulling 
them  through  the  mud.  And  thus  we  spent  twelve  hours  in 
going  three  miles.  The  rebs  were  all  this  time  firing  on  our 
left,  and  pressing  us  very  hard.  On  Monday,  the  16th,  after 
daybreak,  we  were  able  to  pick  our  road.  When  within  a 
mile  or  two  of  Campbell's  station,  on  the  Knoxville  and  East 
Tennessee  railroad,  the  rebs  fired  on  our  rear  guard.  Near 
this  point  the  Kingston  road  joins  the  Loudon  road,  and  both 


448     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

the  rebels  and  us  were  pushing  hard  to  gain  the  forks  of  the 
roads — the}*  to  get  it  to  cut  us  off,  and  we  to  get  it  to  keep 
them  from  flanking  us.  Both  parties  were  about  at  equal  dis 
tances,  but  we  were  the  successful  party.  When  the  51st 
reached  this  point  we  formed  line  of  battle  and  met  them. 
Here  the  battle  raged  fearfully  for  about  an  hour — we  strug 
gling  to  hold  our  position  long  enough  to  give  our  batteries  a 
chance  to  obtain  positions  suitable  for  their  work,  and  the 
rebels,  determined  to  drive  us  from  the  roads,  began  to  pour 
their  troops  upon  us  in  untold  numbers.  Here  at  this  place 
we  had  several  wounded,  but  none  seriously.  After  our  bat 
teries  had  secured  good  positions,  we  then  fell  back,  under 
cover  of  Benjamin's  celebrated  20-p  mnders,  which  opened 
on  the  enemy  in  splendid  style  when  we  reached  the  hill 
whereon  the  battery  was  placed. 

The  most  magnificent  sights  now  appeared  to  view  that  has 
ever  befallen  men  to  witness.  It  was  a  most  fitting  place  for 
such  a  struggle.  As  we  stood  in  line  of  battle  on  the  brow  of  a 
gently  sloping  hill,  we  had  a  view  of  the  whole  battle-field. 
Here  stood  Gen.  Burnside,  whose  countenance  was  as  calm  and 
placid  as  any  pleasant  May-day  morning,  radiant  with  smiles 
at  times  when  he  would  discover  a  blunder  the  rcbs  had  made, 
and  his  own  troops  taking  advantage  of  the  mistake.  His  keen, 
practised  eye  would  peer  over  his  own  -troops,  who  were  all  in 
line  of  battle,  and  viewed  with  close  scrutiny  the  immense 
columns  of  the  enemy,  as  they  poured  out  of  the  surrounding 
woods  in  line  of  battle.  Not  a  move  was  made  that  day  at 
Campbell's  station  by  our  own  troops  or  those  of  the  rebels  but 
was  plainly  visible  to  the  eyes  of  both  armies  ;  all  their  en 
gineering,  all  their  advances  or  retreats,  all  the  positions 
assigned  and  taken  by  both  armies  were  to  be  seen  as  if  looking 
over  a  chess-board,  and  reminded  one  of  a  desperate  game  of 
chess.  Although  they  outnumbered  us  two  to  one,  yet  we 
fought  them  from  9  A.  M.  until  5  p.  M.,  when  we  fell  back  in 
good  order  at  night  to  Knoxville,  a  distance  of  fourteen  miles. 
We  had  achieved  a  victory  over  them,  for  we  gained  our  ends, 
while  the  enemy  was  defeated  in  his  Thus  were  three  days 
and  four  nights  consumed  in  battling  with  the  enemy,  with 
out  rest,  and  on  less  rations  than  we  ought  to  have  received  for 
one  day.  We  reached  the  outskirts  of  Knoxville  just  at  day 
break  on  Tuesday,  the  17th  ult.  Here  we  halted  for  about  an 
hour,  and  had  a  cup  of  coffee.  Nearly  all  of  the  boys  had  lain 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  449 

down  to  rest  their  wearied  limbs,  and  were  unconsciously  falling 
into  the  arms  of  Morpheus,  to  enjoy  that  delightful  sensation, 
"tired  nature's  sweet  restorer,"  sleep,  when  the  tocsin  of  war 
again  was  sounded,  and  all  were  on  their  feet  ready  for  any 
emergency  that  might  arise.  Lieut. -Col.  Schall,  who  had  been 
for  a  long  time  in  command  of  the  2d  Brigade,  rode  up  to  Maj. 
Bolton,  who  was  in  command  of  the  regiment,  and  ordered  us 
to  march  into  the  city  of  Knoxville,  and  occupy  the  centre  of 
the  line  of  battle.  We  accordingly  slung  our  knapsacks,  and 
by  9  A.  M.  we  had  reached  the  position  assigned  us.  I  need 
scarcely  add  that  all  of  our  dead  and  wounded  of  the  day  be 
fore  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy.  We  stacked  arms  on  an 
open  lot  of  ground  in  the  city,  and  immediately  pitched  our 
tents.  Col.  Hartranft  issued  orders  to  impress  all  the  idle  ne 
groes  about  the  city,  and  put  them  at  work  on  the  fortifications, 
as  the  boys  of  his  division  were  too  near  "played  out"  for 
fatigue  duty.  Consequently  there  were  soon  collected  a  motley 
crowd  of  "contraband  conscripts,"  some  of  whom  were  so 
black  that  their  darkness  must  have  been  beautiful  to  them, 
while  others  were  so  light  in  color  that  I  would  have  to  take 
the  second  look  at  them  to  convince  me  they  were  "contra 
bands."  They  were  all  furnished  with  picks  and  shovels,  and 
by  2  o'clock  p.  M.  they  had  a  three-gun  fort  and  a  rifle-pit 
sufficient  for  the  protection  of  two  regiments,  of  which  the  51st 
was  one.  As  soon  as  the  pit  was  done,  Maj.  Bolton  put  our 
regiment  into  it,  which  was  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  our 
regiment  that  we  were  put  behind  anything  affording  protection 
to  fight,  and  right  well  did  we  appreciate  it,  for  we  fully  de 
termined  to  make  these  pits  our  graves  ere  the  haughty  enemy 
should  possess  themselves  of  them.  When  day  dawned  on 
Wednesday,  the  18th,  we  found,  under  the  cover  of  darkness, 
that  the  rebels  had  surrounded  us,  and  that  we  were  besieged. 
This  was  a  busy  day  for  us,  for  we  were  more  determined  than 
before  to  hold  our  position.  We  therefore  took  hold  of  the 
picks  and  shovels  and  extended  our  rifle-pits  at  least  two  hun 
dred  yards  longer  and  built  a  large  dam  that  backed  up  the 
water  from  four  to  twelve  feet  deep  for  several  miles  on  our 
front  and  right.  This  project  was  conceived  by  Col.  Hartranft, 
and  to  show  how  valuable  it  was  in  the  protection  of  the  city, 
I  need  only  say  the  rebels  had  found  out  its  utility,  so  that  dur 
ing  the- whole  nineteen  days'  fighting  here  the  enemy  did  not 
attempt  to  make  an  assault  or  charge  on  our  centre  fortifica- 

20* 


450     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

lions,  but  many  and  desperate  were  their  charges  on  our  left, 
as  they  considered  that  the  weakest  point  of  the  whole  line. 
After  this  dam  was  finished,  which  was  3  o'clock  next  morn 
ing,  ten  or  fifteen  men  were  selected  out  of  the  51st  P.  V.,  to 
occupy  surrounding  houses  and  mills,  as  sharpshooters. 

On  the  morning  of  the  19th,  the  rebels  having  got  a  position 
in  our  front  for  their  battery,  began  shelling  the  three-gun  fort 
and  the  51st  regiment  P.  V.  Their  shots  were  rather  close  for 
comfort ;  but,  uncomfortable  as  it  was,  not  a  solitary  man  left 
the  pits  during  the  shelling.  Capt.  Voncleis,  of  the  15th  In 
diana  battery,  opened  his  three  guns  with  such  rapidity  and 
precision  that  the  rebel  battery-men  could  not  live  at  their  post, 
and  were  forced  to  limber  up  and  hunt  a  safer  place.  Aft?r 
that  demonstration  on  the  part  of  the  enemy,  it  was  thought 
advisable  and  highly  necessary  to  burn  all  the  houses  in  our 
front.  Consequently  about  forty  men  were  detailed  from  the 
51st  P.  V.  to  act  as  houseburners.  This  was  the  most  danger 
ous  and  daring  work  of  the  whole  siege,  for  it  was  certain 
death  if  the  rebels  should  catch  any  of  them  either  in  the  act 
of  firing  the  houses  or  after,  as  was  proven  in  the  case  of  Pat 
terson,  of  Co.  K,  who  had  got  outside  the  house  after  firing  it, 
and  was  shot  down  and  then  bayoneted  until  dead.  Our  sur 
geons  did  not  think  the  gun-shot  wound  sufficient  to  produce 
death.  His  murderer  had  stripped  him  of  his  shoes,  and  had 
the  villain  had  a  few  moments  longer  time,  he  would  have 
stripped  him  of  all  his  clothing,  but  our  regiment  making  a 
charge  at  about  that  time,  drove  them  back  into  their  own  pits. 
On  the  20th,  the  rebels  drove  in  the  pickets  of  the  2d  Maryland 
just  before  daybreak,  but  the  brigade  to  which  the  2d  Mary 
land  belongs  made  an  attempt  to  regain  their  old  picket  lines, 
in  which  they  were  successful.  On  the  21st,  our  dam  having 
filled  to  overflowing,  in  consequence  of  the  hard  rain  of  the 
night  before,  broke,  and  what  cost  us  so  much  labor  was  all 
destroyed  in  less  time  than  it  takes  me  to  tell  it,  and  swept 
away,  in  its  mad,  raging  fury,  all  the  material  that  was  used. 
Col.  Hart  ran  ft  was  standing  in  close  proximity  to  the  scene, 
and  viewed  it  all  with  a  calmness  worthy  of  imitation.  As 
soon  as  the  damage  sustained  was  realized  by  him,  he  imme 
diately  had  another  detail  made  to  repair  it. 

Yours,  &c.,  T.  II.  P. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      451 

The  friends  of  the  51st  P.  V.  relied  a  great  deal 
at  home  on  the  correspondence  from  the  regiment 
to  hear  the  particulars  of  the  doings  and  the  where 
abouts  of  that  body,  as  private  letters  scarcely  ever 
gave  any  of  the  details,  and  the  correspondence  with 
the  paper  was  for  the  sole  purpose  of  general  in 
formation.  The  editor  of  the  paper  took  as  much 
interest  in  giving  publicity  to  it,  as  his  readers  took 
in  perusing  it.  The  constant  moving  about  prevented 
them  from  being  mailed  as  regularly  as  they  would 
have  been  had  facilities  offered  themselves,  in  con 
sequence  for  several  issues  there  would  be  no 
correspondence  published,  and  then  when  any  would 
appear  there  would  be  several  letters  in  one  paper. 
The  following  paragraph  copied  from  the  Defender 
confirms  it : 

ARMY  LETTERS. — We  give  up  a  great  deal  of  our  space,  on 
the  inside,  to  the  letters  of  our  correspondent  from  the  51st 
regiment.  These  letters  recount  the  doings  of  this  band  of 
heroes  for  some  time  past.  By  giving  attention  to  this  corres 
pondence,  the  reader  will  rind  much  real,  valuable,  and 
interesting  information  that  will  amply  repay  perusal.  Our 
correspondent  has  given  a  pretty  clear  and  full  account  of  the 
operations  of  this  regiment  since  their  enlistment,  the  only 
connected  historical  record  we  probably  can  now  secure. 

And  then  follows  as  complete  a  history  as  could 
be  obtained  at  that  time  under  the  circumstances,  viz.: 

BLAIN'S  CROSS  ROADS,  EAST  TENNESSEE, 

December  31s«,  18G3. 

A  substantial  dam-breast  has  been  built  that  holds  all  the 
tremendous  pressure,  to  this  writing,  the  22d.  There  was  very 
little  firing  during  this  day,  but  at  dark  the  cannonading  was 
terrific.  The  boys  began  to  think  that  our  fate  was  to  be 
"gobbled  up,"  not  by  getting  whipped,  but  on  account  of 
rations,  for  we  were  put  on  still  less  rations  from  this  day,  all 
that  was  issued  to  us  was  a  quarter  of  a  loaf  of  bread,  made 
from  the  pure  bran,  not  having  an  ounce  of  meal  in  forty 


452     HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

barrels,  and  a  small  piece  of  fresh  beef,  our  coffee  and  sugar 
was  near  played  out,  and  that  little  piece  of  bran  bread  and 
the  beef  was  our  only  rations,  but  I  shall  not  attempt  to  give 
the  details  of  what  we  had  to  endure  until  I  arrive  at  the  siege. 
The  various  incidents  connected  with  the  siege  and  the  priva 
tions  that  we  endured  during  and  since  the  siege  is  sufficient 
to  call  forth  a  letter  entirely  devoted  to  that  subject  alone,  and 
no  doubt  will  be  read  by  the  many  readers  of  the  Defender, 
as  well  as  the  many  sympathetic  friends  of  the  51st,  with  more 
than  usual  interest.  I  will  also  add  the  complete  list  of  killed, 
wounded  and  missing. 

Monday,  23d,  the  seventh  clay  of  siege  brought  us  a  clear  day, 
and  also  the  cheering  news  that  11,000  men  were  at  Loudon  as 
the  advance  of  a  large  reinforcement  to  our  relief.  Those  of 
our  regiment  who  were  not  out  on  the  front  picket  line  had  to 
live  day  and  night  in  the  ditches,  if  I  except  the  time  they  were 
working  upon  the  various  fortifications  that  surrounded  the  city. 
The  rebels  did  all  in  their  power  in  the  night  to  capture  our 
whole  picket  line,  but  were  only  partially  successful.  They 
made  a  desperate  sally,  but  our  boys  withstood  the  assault  and 
succeeded  in  bringing  a  few  prisoners  into  our  lines.  Our 
houseburners  immediately  applied  the  match  to  about  twenty- 
five  houses  and  succeeded  in  making  their  escape  before  the 
enemy  reached  the  burning  buildings,  with  one  exception,  that 
was  a  man  by  the  name  of  Patterson,  belonging  to  Co.  K,  and 
also  of  the  pioneer  corps.  He  had  fired  his  house  but  from  some 
inexplicable  cause  the  combustion  did  not  ignite  as  rapidly  as 
he  desired  and  returning  back  to  the  house  to  make  "  assurance 
doubly  sure,"  he  was  shot  down,  no  doubt  seriously  but  not 
mortally  wounded.  His  murderer  not  contented  with  taking  a 
wounded  man  prisoner,  repeatedly  thrust  his  bayonet  through 
him,  once  entirely  through  his  head,  which  thrust  no  doubt 
ended  the  sufferer's  life.  He  leaves  a  wife  and  seven  small 
children  to  mourn  his  loss.  While  the  above  houses  were 
burning,  the  air  was  continually  filled  with  reports  of  a  large 
quantity  of  exploding  rebel  ammunition,  that  had  been  con 
cealed  in  the  houses,  prior  to  the  occupation  of  Knoxville  by 
our  forces.  On  Tuesday  24th,  the  rebels  charged  on  our 
pickets  and  drove  a  portion  of  them  in  about  three  o'clock 
A.  M.,  but  by  daylight  we  had  succeeded  in  driving  the  enemy 
back  and  re-established  our  lines  ;  the  losses  on  both  sides  were 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      453 

heavy,  and  considerable  fighting  was  done  all  day  up  to  9 
o'clock  at  night. 

On  Wednesday,  25th,  it  was  found  highly  necessary  to 
strengthen  our  picket  lines,  therefore  the  23d  Corps  furnished 
300  men,  and  the  9th  Corps  200  men,  and  as  the  9th  Corps  had 
held  the  front  of  centre  and  a  portion  of  the  right,  by  the  23d 
Corps  furnishing  a  few  additional  men  we  were  relieved  and 
posted  to  the  left  of  centre.  After  this  change  was  made  there 
was  very  little  firing  by  the  pickets  on  the  line,  no  doubt  on  ac 
count  of  the  extreme  cold  weather,  the  men  were  scarcely  able 
to  handle  their  rifles  they  were  so  benumbed — six  or  eight  more 
houses  were  fired,  but  otherwise  things  had  subsided.  Thurs 
day,  26th,  brought  us  another  quiet,  but,  if  possible,  a  colder  day 
than  the  day  before.  The  boys  began  thinking  the  continued 
quiet  omened  no  good,  and  things  began  to  assume  a  mysterious 
shape.  Orders  were  issued  to  be  ready  to  move  at  a  moment's 
notice. 

Friday,  27th,  only  middling  quiet.  Last  night,  a  good  deal 
of  picket  firing  ;  and  several  more  houses  were  burned  early  this 
morning.  Shortly  after  daylight  we  were  put  in  good  heart  by 
the  information  that  Sherman  had  arrived  at  London  with  20- 
000  more  men.  At  such  good  news  our  hunger,  raggedness  and 
nakedness,  as  well  as  our  almost  frozen  limbs,  were  entirely 
forgotten.  Saturday  28th,  opened  with  a  cold  rain  which  con 
tinued  throughout  the  day  and  night ;  there  was  hard  fighting  all 
day  and  night  on  our  left,  in  which  our  pickets  were  driven  in. 

On  Sunday,  29th,  the  fearful  struggle  took  place.  This  was  a 
day  of  victory  to  our  arms  and  of  disaster  to  the  enemy. 
There  had  been  hard  fighting  all  night  on  the  left,  and  about  2 
o'clock  this  morning  the  enemy  made  several  deadly  and  des 
perate  charges  on  "Fort  Sanders,"  fully  determining  to  carry 
the  work  if  it  could  be  done.  This  fort  mounted  several  twenty 
pounder  guns  of  the  famous  "  Benjamin's  U.  S.  regular  bat 
tery."  It  was  under  the  immediate  command  of  Gen.  Ferrero 
and  Lieut.  Benjamin,  and  conclusively  showed  the  bravery 
and  desperate  daring  of  those  two  heroic  officers  and  the  brave 
men  under  them.  The  enemy  had  massed  a  large  force  and 
rushed  amid  the  darkness  in  a  solid  phalanx  up  and  met  their 
deaths.  This  desperate  charge  had  been  expected  by  our  forces, 
and  Gen.  Ferrero  had  anticipated  their  total  destruction.  The 
ground  in  front  of  the  fort  was  filled  with  stumps  of  felled 
trees,  telegraph  wires  had  been  fastened  from  one  stump  to 


454     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

another  about  a  foot  up  from  the  ground,  forming  a  complete 
network  of  wire  for  a  large  circumference  around,  and  as  the 
rebels  would  reach  the  wires,  they  would  become  entangled 
within  the  meshes  and  fall  down  one  upon  the  other,  until  a 
whole  brigade  would  form  one  solid  heap.  While  in  this 
situation  Benjamin's  battery  would  play  upon  the  confused 
heap  of  humanity  with  grape  and  canister  from  his  twenty 
pounders,  hurling  hundreds  of  the  deluded  victims  into  eternity 
and  wounding  and  maiming  hundreds  of  others.  Still  on  would 
rush  those  who  were  fortunate  enough  to  escape  that  death  to 
meet  almost  as  fearful  a  death  at  the  parapet  of  the  fort.  As 
they  arrived  at  the  moat  which  surrounded  the  fort,  bombs 
were  used  as  hand  grenades,  the  fuses  cut  short  and  then 
ignited,  would  be  rolled  down  the  parapet  into  the  crowded 
moat  and  exploded  in  their  midst,  horribly  mutilating  the  now 
enraged  enemy.  So  determined  were  they  in  taking  this  fort, 
that  some  had  succeeded  in  gaining  the  summit  of  the  parapet, 
but  only  to  be  chopped  down  with  axes  or  clubs,  or  whatever 
the  men  in  the  fort  could  get  in  their  hands  the  quickest.  I 
have  been  assured  by  an  eye  witness,  that  one  of  the  gunners 
of  the  battery  took  a  worm  screw,  used  for  drawing  charges 
out  of  a  cannon,  and  thrusted  it  over  the  parapets  and  giving 
it  a  turn,  he  had  fastened  it  into  the  uniform  of  a  rebel  officer, 
and  screwing  it  still  further  into  his  clothing  succeeded  in  pull 
ing  him  into  the  fort  a  prisoner.  Wasn't  that  cool  ?  Thus  con 
tinued  this  desperate  fighting  until  daylight,  when  the  enemy 
retired  out  of  our  reach,  leaving  several  hundred  dead  (500) 
and  about  600  wounded  and  a  large  number  of  prisoners  in 
our  hands. 

Gen.  Burnside  sent  Longstreet  a  flag  of  truce  about  noon, 
to  come  and  bury  the  rebel  dead  ;  the  flag  of  truce  was  good  for 
five  hours.  The  51st  had  to  charge  on  the  enemy  a  little  before 
daybreak  and  retake  our  picket  line,  in  which  we  were  more 
than  successful,  for  we  could  have  taken  their  lines  too 
had  it  been  any  advantage.  Our  loss  was  trifling,  but  the  rebel 
loss  was  heavy,  and  we  contented  ourselves  with  staying  at 
our  post  and  shooting  down  all  the  "  Johnnies  "  that  ventured 
to  show  themselves  from  behind  their  ditches.  There  are 
many  laughable  incidents  connected  with  this  siege  that  must 
be  told  hereafter,  as  this  is  not  the  place  for  them. 

Monday,  30th.  The  ''drubbing  "  that  the  enemy  got  yesterday 
has  kept  them  very  quiet  all  night.  We  ascertained  yesterday 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      455 

while  the  flag  of  truce  was  good,  that  the  rehels  had  lost,  since 
we  and  they  left  Lenoir,  o-ver  1,500  men,  and  our  loss  but  75  in 
the  two  corps.  On  Tuesday,  December  1st,  we  received  a  dis 
patch  stating  that  Hooker  and  Thomas  had  captured  52  guns 
and  6,000  prisoners  from  Bragg.  As  the  order  was  read  to  each 
command  nine  cheers  were  given  in  honor  of  the  victory. 
Very  little  firing  to-day  on  either  side — we  are  thinking  that 
the  rebels  are  withdrawing  their  forces  to  raise  the  siege.  The 
remainder  of  the  51st  who  did  not  go  out  on  picket  this  morn 
ing,  are  engaged  in  building  a  splendid  cotton  and  sand-bag 
fort. 

On  the  2d  inst.,  Voncleis's  battery  was  removed  from  the 
fort  in  the  rear  of  our  rifle  pits,  to  the  new  fort  erected  by  our 
boys  yesterday.  Last  night,  it  was  necessary  to  go  there  as 
a  support  to  Benjamin's  battery,  for  they  were  nearly  out  of 
ammunition,  and  the  supply  was  only  kept  up  by  discovering  a 
large  number  of  32  pound  shells  and  placing  them  on  a  turning 
lathe  and  reducing  them  suitable  for  the  20  pounder  guns  ; 
by  this  means  Benjamin's  battery  was  kept  effective,  for  with 
the  loss  of  that  battery  the  loss  of  Knoxville  was  certain,  and 
our  infantry  ammunition  was  also  nearly  exhausted,  making  us 
feel  certain  that  if  the  rebels  did  not  raise  the  siege  in  a  few 
days  surrender  we  must,  for  the  horses  of  the  different  batteries 
and  wagon  trains  were  suffering  terribly  for  provender,  in  fact 
one  corral  of  battery  horses  had  eaten  up  the  straw  that  their 
collars  were  stuffed  with,  as  well  as  the  ropes  they  were  picketed 
with.  Our  own  rations  were  so  small,  that  one  man  could 
consume  at  one  meal  what  was  given  to  two  men  for  two  days' 
rations. 

Thursday,  3d  inst.,  we  discovered  the  rebels'  wagon  trains 
were  moving  up  to  our  right,  our  twelve  gun  fort  shelled  them 
with  great  execution,  hurrying  them  pell  mell  along  the  river 
road.  We  feel  fully  convinced  that  Longstreet  is  about  to 
raise  the  siege,  as  their  batteries  do  not  reply  to  ours ;  no  firing 
on  their  side  only  from  their  pickets.  Friday,  4th,  our  forts  are 
keeping  up  a  lively  commotion  to-day,  the  cannonading  is 
deafening,  but  the  rebels  are  evidently  moving  off  as  they  have 
not  fired  but  one  shot  from  their  u  Gray  Horse  battery"  all 
day.  Saturday,  5th,  and  19th  day  of  siege.  This  morning  set 
in  rainy,  but  brought  us  the  cheering  news  that  the  siege  was 
raised  about  4  o'clock  this  morning,  very  much  to  the  grati 
fication  of  us  poor  pent-up  mortals.  No  sooner  was  it  ascer- 


456     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

tained  that  the  enemy  had  vamosed,  than  the  51st  was  ordered 
to  fall  in  to  follow  up  the  retreat,  and  bring  in  whatever  rebel 
stragglers  might  be  captured.  We  were  glad  of  the  chance  of 
getting  the  privilege  of  roaming  the  country  once  more, 
and  notwithstanding  the  miry  condition  of  the  roads  and 
the  copious  supply  of  the  aquatic  fluid  falling  in  torrents,  we 
started  off  and  scouted  several  miles  around  the  country  and  on 
the  road  to  Cumberland  Gap.  We  returned  wet,  famished  and 
fatigued  at  about  4  F.  M. 

More  anon.  T.  H.  P. 

HOME  AGAIN. — Lieut.  Col.  E.  Schall,  Lieut.  Ortlip  and  Sergt. 
Fair  are  home  on  a  furlough,  with  a  chance  to  spend  the  holi 
days  with  their  friends  at  home,  they  are  all  well.  They  have 
from  twenty-five  to  thirty  days  leave  of  absence.  Col.  Hart- 
ran  it  has  been  commanding  a  division  and  Schall  a  brigade. 
(When  will  the  authorities  at  Washington  show  their  gratitude 
and  justice  by  appointing  Hariranft  to  the  position  he  has  so 
long  since  earned,  that  of  brigader-general  ?)  The  Col.  of  the 
fifty-first  has  been  performing  the  duly  of  major-general,  while 
the  Lieut.  Col.  has  been  filling  the  place  of  a  brigader.  This 
regiment,  the  heroes  of  Roanoke,  Chantilly  and  Antietam,  the 
51st,  is  reduced  to  about  one  hundred  and  seven  muskets,  but 
they  all  are  hard  knots  to  get  over,  and  when  called  into 
service  they  are  the  boys  to  give  hard  knocks.  Major  Bolton 
has  had  command  of  the  regiment,  and  most  of  the  officers  are 
doing  duty  higher  than  their  ranks.  Few  regiments  in  the  field 
have  won  greater  or  more  unfading  honors ;  and  may  the 
brave  band  yet  left,  all  be  permitted  to  return  home  in  health 
and  safety,  very  soon,  with  rebellion  forever  crushed  in  the 
land. 

BLAIN'S  CROSS  ROADS,  EAST  TENNESSEE, 

January  1st,  1864. 

In  my  last  I  closed  with  the  raising  of  the  siege  of  Knoxville. 
I  will  now  give  you  the  details  of  what  few  incidents  came 
under  my  own  notice,  with  a  few  that  I  have  obtained  from 
reliable  sources,  for  it  is  my  wish  to  record  nothing  in  the 
annals  of  the  51st  but  what  are  undeniable  facts.  To  begin 
them  ;  on  the  day  that  the  flag  of  truce  was  sent,  and  while  it 
(the  flag  of  truce,)  was  good,  Gen.  Garcie  of  the  rebel  army, 
Gen.  Ferrero  and  Lieut.  Benjamin,  of  Benjamin's  battery,  met, 
after  passing  the  compliments  of  the  day,  in  rather  a  cool 
manner.  Lieut.  Benjamin  recognized  in  Gen.  Garcie  an  old 
West  Point  classmate  ;  they  exchanged  exclamations  of  aston 
ishment  at  meeting  each  other  as  deadly  enemies,  who  had  in 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      457 

their  earlier  days  been  such  tried  and  devoted  friends,  although 
on  the  ground  on  which  they  stood  both  had  given  undoubted 
proofs  of  their  daring  and  courage  only  a  few  hours  before  ; 
each  stood  with  hands  clasped  in  friendship,  scarcely  able  to 
give  utterance  to  each  other,  of  their  feelings  ;  and  while  their 
hearts  were  filled  with  emotion,  tears  were  seen  to  trickle  down 
their  cheeks,  while  they  gazed  on  each  other  in  silence.  The 
silence  was  broken  by  Lieut.  Benjamin  asking  Gen.  Garcie 
what  he  thought  of  the  wires?  Gen.  Garcie  replied,  with  a 
braggadocia  air,  and  told  Gen.  Ferrero  and  Lieut.  Benjamin 
that  he  was  bound  to  take  his  fort,  (Benjamin's  fort.)  Gen. 
Ferrero  replied,  "The  fort  is  there,  general,  and  whenever 
you  feel  like  trying  it  on  again,  do  so  ;  you  will  find  us  there 
to  meet  you  ;  but  I  must  tell  you,  that  before  you  can  get  that 
fort  you  have  got  to  whip  the  old  9th  Corps."  At  the  men 
tion  of  the  Oth  Corps,  Gen.  Garcie  looked  with  bewilderment, 
and,  somewhat  confused,  asked  if  it  was  possible  that  the  9th 
Corps  were  actually  there.  Gen.  Ferrero  assured  him  of  the 
fact.  I  must  here  give  an  explanation  why  the  presence  of  the 
9th  Corps  so  astonished  the  rebels. 

A  day  or  two  before  the  rebels  made  their  desperate  charge, 
Gen.  Longstreet  made  a  speech  to  his  troops  to  stimulate  them 
to  deeds  of  valor,  and  in  his  speech  he  assured  his  men  that 
they  could  take  the  fort,  also  the  city,  with  very  little  opposi 
tion,  after  making  a  charge  ;  telling  that  there  was  only  the 
23d  Corps  in  the  works,  and  that  it  was  composed  of  green 
troops  who  would  not  stand  a  charge,  or  more  than  one  volley, 
and  therefore  victory  was  certain,  and  the  conquest  was  to  be 
cheap.  But  when  they  made  that  charge  and  fired  that  one 
volley,  nearly  one-half  of  the  storming  party  lay  silent  in  death, 
for  instead  of  finding  green  troops,  they  had  met  their  old  vete 
ran  foe  whom  they  had  met  at  Camden,  North  Carolina,  on 
the  19th  of  April,  1862,  at  Antietam,  at  Fredericksburg,  and  at 
Jackson,  Mississippi,  last  July.  Longstreet' s  men  told  our 
boys  that  they  had  been  sold  twice,  once  by  the  Yankee  Gen. 
Ferrero  with  the  wires,  and  once  by  Longstreet,  in  sending 
them  against  a  veteran  corps,  under  the  impression  of  meeting 
green  troops.  While  the  flag  of  truce  was  good,  the  rebel  pickets 
and  our  pickets  mingled  freely  with  each  other,  and  many  a 
bargain  was  made  between  them.  Trading  watches,  pocket 
knives,  tobacco,  finger  rings,  buying  and  selling  of  clothing, 
pocket-books,  and  such  notions  as  each  wish  to  possess  them- 


458     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

selves  of  for  mementos  of  the  occasion.  The  best  of  feeling 
was  expressed  by  both  parties,  and  if  a  stray  hog  should  by 
chance  come  within  sight,  both  Reb  and  Yank  would  start  off 
in  pursuit  of  the  porker,  and  catch  and  slaughter  it,  and  then 
divide  it  equally  between  them  with  many  jocular  remarks 
about  the  mode  of  living  that  each  army  was  subject  to.  The 
commencement  of  cessation  of  hostlities  by  both  sets  of  pickets 
began  with  hallooing  to  each  other,  then  with  the  poking  up 
of  heads  above  their  rude  breastworks,  and  then  by  exposing 
themselves  outside  of  the  works,  finally  feeling  some  confidence 
in  each  other,  and  no  shots  being  fired  along  either  line,  they 
began  by  advancing  towards  one  another.  Between  the  two 
picket  lines  flowed  a  stream  of  water,  this  was  the  Rappa- 
hannock  of  the  two  parties,  when  both  parties  met  near  the 
stream,  the  following  introductory  remarks  took  place,  the 
Rebs  asking : 

"Hallo,  Yanks,  what  regiment?" 
Yank— "The  51st  Pennsylvania." 
Rebs — "D — good  boys,  too." 
Yank — "Say,  Johnnies,  what  regiments  ?" 
Reb — "88th  Tennessee,  2d  Georgia,  and  4th  Mississippi." 
Yank — "We've  met  you  chaps  before." 
Rebs — "  Yes,  several  times  ;  come  across  the  creek." 
Yank — "  Can't  see  it ;  will  you  reach  your  hand  out  ?" 
Reb — "Yes;  here,  give  us  your  hand;  now  jump!"  and  over 
one  went  and  in  a  few  minutes  the  51st  boys  were  on  the  rebel 
side,  and  in  return  the  rebels  came  over  to  our  side,  and  all  the 
civilities  of  an  enlightened  race  were  extended  to  one  another. 
The  pickets  of  both  lines  made  a  treaty  between  themselves, 
not  to  fire  a  gun  at  each  other  during  that  relief,  which  would 
be  until  4  o'clock  the  next  morning,  and  with  true  faith  was  it 
carried  out,  although  the  flag  of  truce  expired  at  5  p.  M.    There 
was  not  a  solitary  shot  fired  until  the  next  relief  was  put  on 
the  next  morning.     When  the  new  relief  was  posted,  the  rebel 
pickets  hallooed  over  to  our  boys  to  know  what  regiment ;  they 
were  answered,  the  51st  Pennsylvania,  and  our  boys  asking 
them,  they  replied,  the  3d  Georgia.     Now  we  knew  this  to  be 
false,   or  partly  so,  for  this  3d  Georgia  and  the  51st  are  old 
acquaintances,    having  either  by  accident  or  design  met  and 
fought  each  other  on  every  battle-field  from  the  Camden,  North 
Carolina,  affair,  where  we  met  them  for  the  first  time,  at  which 
place  they  numbered  about  1,400,  according  to  their  own  figures, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      459 

until  we  met  at  Knoxville  ;  and  at  that  time  that  the  charge 
was  made  on  Fort  Sanders,  the  3d  Georgia  was  annihilated  ; 
what  few  there  were  who  escaped  death  were  taken  prisoners, 
and  they  acknowledged  that  that  was  the  last  of  the  3d  Georgia. 
A  day  or  two  after  we  got  our  ditches  dug  in  front  of  the  loth 
Indiana  battery,  Gen.  Burnside  visited  us,  and  walked  along 
the  works,  which  were  very  deep  with  mud  from  the  heavy 
rain  of  the  night  before.  Those  who  had  remained  in  the 
ditches  all  night  were  terribly  besmeared  with  mud  from  head 
to  foot.  Gen.  Burnside,  with  a  smile  beaming  on  his  counte 
nance,  asked,  in  a  cheering  voice,  "are  you  in  comfortable 

quarters,  boys?11     Barney  O'D replied:    "Yes,   General; 

oh  !   we  are  getting  used  to  this." 

"No,  you  ain't!  no,  you  ain't !"  hastily  replied  the  general, 
"you  were  never  in  pits  before  in  your  life,  and  how  can  you 
be  used  to  it  already,  were  you  ?  Where  were  the  pits  that  you 
were  in  that  you  have  got  used  to  them?"  Poor  Barney 
looked  abashed,  but  nothing  daunted,  replied,  "General,  I 
meant  that  we  were  getting  used  to  the  mud."  "  Oh!  ah!  yes," 
says  the  general,  "if  you  mean  that  I  expect  you  are  pretty 
near  used  to  it  by  this  time,"  and  tipping  a  wink  to  some 
stranger  colonel,  he  walked  off,  and  went  to  the  fort  in  our 
rear.  Some  one  said,  "  General,  I  think  the  rebels  have  a  bat 
tery  planted  directly  in  our  front."  The  general  asked  for  the 
glasses,  and  peering  through  them  all  around  the  spot  indi 
cated  by  the  speaker,  took  them  from  his  eyes  and  remarked 
"  That  there  was  a  good  position  out  there  for  the  rebels  to  put 
a  battery,  but  they  had  none  there  yet.'1'1  The  words  had  not  died 
on  his  lips  when  a  shot  from  the  battery  spoken  of  struck  close 
to  the  fort,  covering  the  general  and  all  hands  with  the  earth 
it  tore  up  ;  it  did  no  harm  further  than  making  an  opening  in 
the  roof  of  a  house  in  which  Col.  Schall  had  his  brigade  head 
quarters.  During  the  siege,  the  51st  regiment  had  102  men  for 
duty,  that  is  field  duty;  the  detail  every  day  for  the  picket  line 
was  54  men.  This  detail  was  divided  thus:  27  men  would  go 
out  on  picket  at  4  o'clock  in  the  morning,  would  not  be  relieved 
until  the  next  morning  at  the  same  time;  the  remaining  21 
would  go  on  at  6  o'clock  in  the  evening,  to  be  relieved  at  the 
same  time  the  next  evening.  Now,  this  don't  seem  much,  nor 
is  it,  if  that  had  been  the  only  duty.  Those  men  who  were 
relieved  would  come  into  the  pits  and  get  a  cup  of  meal  and 
cook  it  up  for  their  day's  rations,  and  before  they  would  have 


460     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

it  cooked  or  baked,  they  would  be  detailed  to  work  all  day  on 
the  fortifications,  although  they  had  been  out  on  picket,  with 
out  any  sleep,  for  the  previous  24  hours,  and  were  now  to  work 
all  day  without  sleep,  and  not  unfrequently  work  all  night,  and 
then  go  out  on  picket  again  in  the  morning  for  24  hours.  I 
have  myself  had  to  take  men  and  put  them  on  picket  for  27 
hours  in  succession,  and  they  without  sleep  all  that  time,  and 
then  detail  them  to  dig  pits  for  a  clay  or  a  night  after  coming 
in.  I  ask,  is  it  possible  for  men  to  keep  themselves  clean  and 
healthy  on  being  kept  occupied  both  clay  and  night,  without 
even  time  enough  to  wash  their  faces  only  once  a  day,  to  say 
nothing  of  getting  any  clothing  washed.  I  myself  was  forced 
to  wear  shirts  only  seven  weeks  at  a  stretch,  on  account  of  not 
getting  time  enough  to  wash  one.  I  had  attempted  it  several 
times,  and  succeeded  far  enough  once  to  get  the  water  on  the 
fire  to  boil  just  as  I  was  ordered  to  form  the  company  immedi 
ately  to  leave.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the  "soldier  bugs" 
arid  I  had  stubbornly  contested  for  the  shirt  when  I  pulled  it 
off  after  a  halt  of  an  hour,  but  I  came  off  in  full  possession, 
and  have  not  been  molested  since.  Laying  jokes  on  one  side, 
and  looking  facts  in  the  face  as  they  are,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed 
that  men  who  have  been  used  as  we  have,  since  about  the  14th 
of  November  last,  can  do  better  than  we  have  to  keep  clean. 
More  anon,  T.  H.  P. 

CAMP  OF  THE  51sT  REGT.  P.  V., 
BLAIN'S  CROSS  ROADS,  EAST  TENNESSEE,  Jan.  2cZ,  1864. 

I  send  a  complete  list  of  the  killed,  wounded  and  missing  of 
the  51st  Pennsylvania  from  the  skirmish  at  Loudon  up  to  the 
present  time : 

Co. _  A.— Samuel  H.  and  Abram  Jones,  and  Corp.  Charles  M. 
llennis  were  captured ;  the  latter  escaped.  Daniel  Lare, 
wounded  in  the  foot  at  Knoxville. 

Co.  B. — Wm.  Albert,  captured  at  Leiper's  Ferry;  Benj.  J. 
Eiley,  wounded  in  the  leg  at  Knoxville,  since  died. 

Co.  C. — Michael  Dillon,  wounded  in  the  fingers  slightly. 
Wm.  Robinson,  slightly  in  the  ankle,  at  Campbell's  station,  by 
a  spent  ball. 

Cos.  D  and  E. — None. 

Co.  F. — Wm.  Mclntyre,  taken  prisoner. 

Co.  G. — Robert  Hinton,  in  the  hand  slightly.  Geo.  Meiss,  at 
Blain's  Cross  Roads,  w7as  wounded  in  the  shoulder  by  the  pre 
mature  explosion  of  a  shell  from  our  own  battery;  not  serious. 

Co.  H. — Wm.  H.  Dougherty,  killed  at  Knoxville.  Daniel 
Clark,  taken  prisoner. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.      461 

Co.  I. — Geo.  E.  Peters,  missing;  supposed  to  have  been  cap 
tured  at  Campbell's  station. 

Co.  K. — Edward  R.  Patterson,  killed  at  Kuoxville.  Sergt. 
Franklin  Sterner,  in  the  ankle.  Sergt.  Wm.  Mellick,  in  the 
leg.  Those  two  latter  were  wounded  at  Campbell's  station. 
Geo.  Buss,  wounded  at  Knoxville,  and  was  taken  prisoner. 
Total  killed,  2;  wounded,  8;  taken  prisoners,  7;  missing,  1. 

I  will  now  give  a  full  account  of  the  doings  of  the  51st 
from  the  6th  of  December  to  the  20th  of  December,  1863. 
On  Sunday,  the  6th,  we  were  pleased  to  hear  that  the  pay 
master  would  pay  us  off  that  day,  for  we  thought  if  we  had  a 
little  money  we  could  find  something  to  buy  a  little  of  some 
thing  to  eat,  and  help  to  eke  out  the  less  than  quarter  rations 
which  we  were  receiving  from  the  commissary.  In  this  we 
were  in  a  great  measure  disappointed,  for  the  citizens  were  as 
"  hard  up  "  for  "grub  "  as  we  were.  I  succeeded  in  purchasing 
one  pound  of  cornmeal  after  walking  two  miles  for  it;  some  of 
the  boys  were  fortunate  enough  to  get  a  few  canteenfuls  of 
molasses  at  the  round  price  of  $1  per  canteenful,  or  67  cents 
per  quart.  The  prices  in  Knoxville  are  almost  fabulous:  10 
cents  for  a  box  of  matches,  15  cents  for  a  skein  of  thread,  10 
cents  for  a  six's  cigar,  25  cents  a  glass  for  whiskey,  20  cents  per 
pound  for  fresh  pork,  $25  per  barrel  for  flour,  $8  to  $20  for 
boots,  $10  to  $22  for  pants;  eggs,  75  cents  per  dozen;  poultry, 
$1  to  $1.7-3  per  pair;  coffee,  $5  per  pound;  tea,  $12  to  $25  per 
pound;  sugar,  from  50  cents  to  $1.25  per  pound;  and  every 
thing  sells  at  the  above  exorbitant  prices,  that  is  when  you  can 
come  across  them  to  buy. 

Early  on  the  next  morning  (the  7th)  we  received  orders  to 
pack  up  and  leave  our  tents  stand,  and  our  knapsacks  in  them, 
and  be  ready  to  march  at  7|  A.  M.  We  were  ready  at  the  ap 
pointed  time.  We  also  were  to  have  three  days'  rations  in  our 
haversacks,  but  there  was  not  rations  enough  to  issue  for  that 
one  day,  and  no  small  number  of  us  had  to  go  on  that  march 
without  breaking  our  fast  until  evening;  however,  being  in 
light  marching  trim,  we  made  twelve  miles  towards  Rutledge. 
We  camped  at  4  p.  M.,  and  waited  for  the  wagons  to  come  up, 
which  they  did  about  5  o'clock.  We  then  got  our  "little 
pint"  of  meal,  and  hastily  baked  it  all,  so  as  to  be  ready  to 
leave  at  a  "moment's"  notice.  We,  however  did  not  leave 
the  next  day  until  11  A.  M.  ;  we  then  made  but  7  miles,  and 
quartered  for  the  first  time  since  we  have  been  out  in  a  large 
house.  Here  we  met  a  lad  on  horseback,  coming  from  mill 


462      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

with  a  bag  full  of  cornmeal,  and  not  asking  him  whether  he 
would  sell  it  or  not,  we  measured  it  out  so  as  to  give  every  man 
a  quart,  and  paid  the  little  chap  ten  cents  per  quart  for  it  all. 
It  is  needless  to  say  that  we  had  a  supper  that  reminded  us  of 
days  long  past,  when  full  rations  were  in  vogue.  We  spent  a 
comfortable  night,  and  left  next  morning  at  7^  A.  M.,  and 
marched  to  within  1£  miles  of  Rutledge,  when  we  halted  for 
one  and  a-half  hours  lor  dinner;  but  ere  the  dinner  was  over, 
we  were  ordered  to  go  into  camp  on  that  ground.  Not  having 
our  tents  with  us,  we  cut  cedars  and  pines,  and  with  the  aid  of 
rails,  WTC  made  a  kind  of  a  shelter  against  the  worst  of  the 
storm. 

Here  we  remained  from  the  9th  to  the  loth,  in  which  there 
was  nothing  of  interest  transpired,  if  I  except  the  departure  of 
Lieut.  Col.  Schall,  who  left  here  on  the  12th  for  his  home, 
taking  a  very  large  amount  of  money  home  for  the  boys  in  the 
51st  to  their  friends,  and  also  the  arrival  of  a  large  mail,  being 
the  first  one  for  five  weeks.  During  the  time  that  we  laid  here 
we  contrived  a  plan  by  which  we  got  a  little  more  to  eat.  We 
found  a  small  lot  of  damaged  wheat  in  an  old  log  building,  and 
it  was  brought  into  camp,  and  also  whenever  there  was  an  ear 
of  corn  to  be  found,  it  was  shelled;  it  and  the  wheat  went 
through  a  grinding  process  in  an  old  coffee-mill,  and  the  pro 
duct,  which  was  neither  flour  or  meal,  wTas  worked,  kneaded 
into  a  paste,  and  then  baked.  It  greatly  relieved  the  "inner 
man"  from  that  disagreeable  sensation,  hunger. 

On  the  morning  of  the  15th,  left  camp  in  a  hurry,  and  formed 
line  of  battle,  as  the  rebels  were  driving  in  our  advance  pickets. 
After  standing  in  line  for  a  couple  of  hours,  we  were  taken 
through  a  gorge  or  pass  in  the  Clinch  Mountains,  to  oppose  any 
flank  movement  on  our  left  that  the  rebels  might  attempt;  no 
attempt,  however,  was  made  until  night.  We  had  drawn  two 
days'  rations  of  fresh  beef  and  one  of  flour,  and  the  boys  had 
their  flour  pretty  much  all  wetted  and  their  meat  in  the  boiler 
over  the  fire  when  orders  were  given  for  a  retreat.  We  left  in 
quite  a  hurry;  some  threw  away  both  meat  and  dough,  and 
some  of  the  more  thoughtful  secured  both  as  best  they  could, 
and  brought  it  aw^ay  with  them.  We  marched  that  night  to 
wards  Blain's  Cross  Roads  until  3  o'clock  in  the  morning,  when 
we  halted  in  a  cornfield  until  9  o'clock  A.  M.  of  the  IGth;  this 
was  an  uncomfortable  place,  being  mud  almost  knee-deep.  We 
then  marched  about  three  miles,  and  formed  line  of  battle,  and 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  463 

constructed  a  rude  breastwork  of  the  surrounding  fences,  then 
laid  on  our  arms  all  night,  wnich  was  a  very  rainy  one  I  assure 
yon.  The  17th  found  us  early  in  line  of  battle;  but  about  10 
o'clock  A.  M.  the  rebels  had  succeeded  in  driving  in  Wol  ford's 
cavalry  skirmishers,  and  we  then  went  to  the  front  as  skirmish 
ers.  Considerable  skirmishing  took  place  throughout  the  day. 
We  held  our  line  with  as  much  stubbornness  as  if  we  were  a 
large  regiment;  and  night  closing  on  us,  found  us  still  holding 
our  own.  Next  morning,  the  18th,  Lieut.  Foster,  who  was  in 
command  of  the  51st  skirmishers,  advanced  the  line  about  3 
miles  without  any  serious  opposition.  It  was  during  the  skir 
mishing  on  the  17th  that  Geo.  Meiss,  of  Co.  K,  was  wounded; 
a  battery  that  was  employed  in  shelling  the  rebel  skirmishers 
was  posted  in  our  rear,  and  had  to  throw  its  shot  and  shell 
directly  over  our  heads;  several  of  the  shells  exploded  prema 
turely,  wounding  Meiss  in  the  shoulder. 

Lieut.  Jacob  P.  Brooke  arrived  at  his  regiment  while  the 
fight  was  going  on,  and  immediately  reported  himself  for  duty. 
He  had  been  two  months  in  trying  to  reach  his  regiment;  he 
was  received  by  his  host  of  friends  with  unrestrained  enthusi 
asm.  On  Saturday,  19th,  five  companies  were  sent  over  the 
mountains  toward  Indian  Ridge,  to  do  outside  picketing. 
They  stayed  out  two  days,  capturing  a  stray  rebel  occasion 
ally.  Co.  I  was  sent  out  about  two  and  a  half  miles  to  the  left 
to  take  charge  of  the  cross-roads  which  diverge  to  Buffalo 
creek,  Indian  Ridge  road,  and  to  Renfrau's  bridge.  A  short 
distance  from  this  important  post  was  two  brigades  of  rebel 
Alabama  cavalry,  under  the  command  of  Gen.  Martin,  in  camp. 
A  colored  man,  by  name  John  Reaves,  was  sent  out  late  in  the 
afternoon  after  forage.  His  master  employed  him  to  cook  for 
him  and  another  lieutenant  of  the  name  of  Burnet,  belonging 
to  the  7th  Alabama  cavalry.  Before  starting  after  forage,  they 
told  Reaves  that  if  he  would  return  without  any,  that  they 
would  whip  him.  This  decided  the  contraband  to  get  into 
our  lines  if  possible  ;  he  therefore  wandered  about  on  his  mule, 
which  was  the  finest  one  I  ever  saw,  until  dark,  and  then  going 
to  a  known  Union  man's  house,  he  gave  him  a  blanket  to  pilot 
him  into  our  lines.  He  came  on  to  our  vidette  post,  and  was 
taken  and  brought  into  picket  quarters.  I  furnished  him  with 
a  cup  of 'coffee  that  I  chanced  to  have ;  he  said  that  it  was  the 
first  coffee  that  he  had  seen  for  two  years.  In  answer  to  my 
endless  inquiries,  he  stated  that  there  were  two  brigades  en- 


464:     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

camped  there  at  the  ridge,  of  Alabama  cavalry  ;  that  they  were 
entirely  destitute  of  both  rations  and  clothing,  that  many  -vere 
barefooted,  and  that  no  rations  had  been  issued  for  four  days, 
and  all  that  they  could  obtain  was  taken  from  the  citizens,  and 
that  they  would  soon  be  "played  out,'1  as  some  of  our  forces 
were  in  their  rear,  and  in  fact  they  were  entirely  surrounded, 
and  could  not  move  either  wa}r;  they  expected  to  be  captured. 
He  also  confirmed  what  other  prisoners  had  stated,  which  was 
that  they  had  three  batteries  with  them,  of  five  guns  each,  but 
entirely  out  of  ammunition  for  both  artillery  and  small  arms. 
I  placed  this  Reaves  in  the  hands  of  Gen.  Ferrero's  staff,  and 
he  was  taken  to  Gen.  Parke's  head-quarters. 

More  anon,  T.  II.  P. 

BLAIN'S  CROSS  ROADS,  EAST  TENNESSEE, 

January  7th,  1864. 

Since  writing  my  last,  notwithstanding  the  rough  usage 
that  the  51st  have  undergone  since  it  came  into  this  depart 
ment,  it  has  almost,  or  I  might  say  entirely,  gone  into  another 
three  years  of  re-enlistment.  We  have  been  mustered  out 
of  our  first  scrape,  and  now  we  are  mustered  in  again  for 
the  second  edition  of  a  history  of  the  old  51st.  To  many  of 
our  dear  ones  at  home  this  will  be  sad  tidings.  Many,  very 
many,  of  us  struggled  to  decide  what  was  our  duty,  we  asked 
ourselves,  u  Did  the  interest  of  our  families  or  our  country  need 
us  the  most  ?  to  serve  one  at  home  or  to  serve  the  other  in  the 
field  ?  At  last  the  decision  came,  that  while  serving  our  country 
in  the  field  we  could  better  attend  to  our  families  at  home,  and 
therefore,  ragged  and  barefooted  as  we  are,  we  determined  to 
"rally  once  again"  under  that  devoted  old  flag.  (Ours  is 
more  in  the  form  of  fancy  fringe  woik  than  a  flag;  but  still 
there  is  enough  of  it  left  to  prove  that  it  was  a  flag  when  Gov. 
Curtin  presented  it  to  our  care,  more  than  two  years  ago.)  We 
hope  in  this  new  term  to  see  this  accursed  rebellion  brought 
to  a  close.  For  the  information  of  those  at  home  of  the  friends 
of  the  "  veteran  51st,'1  I  would  say  that  we  expect  to  leave  here 
in  a  very  short  time  (two  weeks),  and  go  to  Pennsylvania  as  a 
regiment  to  reorganize,  recruit,  and  for  a  thirty  day's  furlough. 
We  will  try  to  camp,  if  possible,  near  Valley  Forge,  and  ex 
pect  to  stay  long  enough  to  recruit  the  regiment  to  its  full  quota. 

In  my  last  your  readers  accompanied  me  in  the  doings  of  the 
51st  up  to  December  20th.  I  will  therefore  ask  them  to  <;fall 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  465 

in  line,"  and  march  along  up  to  the  above  date  (January  7th). 
On  Monday,  December  21st,  Capt.  Gaulin,  who  had  command 
of  the  whole  picket  line,  brought  the  remainder  of  his  pickets 
out  to  the  cross  roads  where  Co.  I  had  been  posted  the  day 
before.  After  selecting  suitable  sites  to  quarter  in,  and  getting 
the  pickets  posted,  we  were  relieved  by  the  35th  Mass.,  and  we 
then  returned  to  our  camp,  where  we  arrived  at  dark,  and 
found  that  our  knapsacks  and  tents,  as  well  as  cooking  utensils, 
had  been  brought  to  us  from  the  city  of  Knoxville,  much  to 
our  gratification.  Some  few  pitched  their  tents  that  night ;  but 
early  next  morning  Major  Bolton  selected  a  more  sheltered 
camp  ground,  in  a  woods,  where  we  soon  pitched  our  tents, 
and  once  more  "set  up  housekeeping"  in  the  usual  way. 
While  busy  in  setting  "  things  to  right,"  we  received  quite  an 
accession  to  our  ranks,  by  the  arrival  of  a  number  of  furloughed 
men,  who  had  been  fifty-nine  days  on  their  way,  from  the  time 
that  they  left  home  until  their  arrival  in  camp.  The  party  who 
came  that  day  and  since  were  twelve  in  all,  Capts.  Jos.  K. 
Bolton  and  Lynn,  Lieuts.  Wm.  F.  Campbell  and  Schoch,  pri 
vates  James  W.  Hibbert,  Philip  Hattel,  and  others  were  of  the 
party,  and  each  and  all  were  received  with  a  cordial  greeting. 
They  all  look  well,  and  much  better  than  when  they  left  for 
their  homes. 

On  Wednesday  morning,  23d,  early,  we  went  out  several 
miles  to  reconnoitre,  and  returned  about  two  o'clock  p.  M. 
Nothing  of  interest  transpired  while  out,  and  I  might  say  since 
then  also.  The  last  few  days  of  the  month  were  devoted  by  the 
different  companies  in  making  out  their  muster  and  pay  rolls, 
ordnance,  quarterly  and  monthly  reports.  We  were  mustered 
for  two  months1  pay  on  the  31st  December.  After  that  recruit 
ing  for  the  veteran  corps  began  in  earnest,  as  all  who  wished  to 
secure  the  bounty  and  premium  of  $402  had  to  re-enlist  before 
the  5th  hist.  The  modus  operandi  of  paying  the  bounty  is  as 
follows,  viz.  : 

I.  Upon  being  mustered  into  service,  he  shall  be  paid  one 
month's  pay  in  advance,  $13.  First  instalment  of  bounty,  $00. 
Premium,  $2.  Total  payment  on  muster,  $75.  II.  At  first 
regular  pay  day  (1st  of  March)  or  two  mouths  after  muster  in, 
an  additional  instalment  of  bounty  will  be  paid,  $50.  III. 
At  the  first  regular  pay  clay  (1st  of  July)  after  six  months'  ser 
vice  he  shall  be  paid  an  additional  instalment  of  bounty,  $50. 
IV.  At  the  first  regular  pay  day  after  the  end  of  the  first  year's 

21 


466      HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

service  (1st  of  Jan.,  1865)  an  additional  instalment  of  bounty 
will  be  paid,  $50.  V.  At  the  first  regular  pay  day  after  eigh 
teen  months'  service  (July  1st,  1865)  an  additional  instalment 
of  bounty  will  be  paid,  $50.  VI.  At  the  first  regular  pay  (Jan. 
1st,  1866)  after  two  years'  service,  an  additional  instalment 
of  bounty  will  be  paid,  $50.  VII.  At  the  first  regular  pay  day 
after  two  and  a  half  years'  service,  (July  1st,  1866,)  an  addi 
tional  instalment  of  bounty  will  be  paid,  $50.  VIII.  At  the 
expiration  of  the  three  years'  (Jan.  1st,  1867)  service,  the  re 
mainder  of  the  bounty  will  be  paid,  $40. 

If  the  Government  shall  not  require  these  troops  for  the  full 
period  of  three  years,  and  they  shall  be  mustered  out,  honor 
ably,  of  service  before  the  expiration  of  their  term  of  enlist 
ment,  they  shall  receive  upon  being  mustered  out,  the  whole 
amount  of  bounty  remaining  unpaid,  the  same  as  if  the  full 
term  had  been  served.  The  legal  heirs  of  volunteers  who  die 
in  service  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  the  whole  bounty  remain 
ing  unpaid  ai  the  time  of  the  soldier's  death. 

Paragraph  fourth  of  general  orders  No.  376,  says  :  In  going 
to  and  coming  from  the  respective  States  and  homes,  the 
veteran  volunteers,  furloughed  as  herein  provided,  will  be 
furnished  with  transportation  by  the  Quartermaster's  depart 
ment. 

The  weather  here,  at  present,  is  very  cold,  freezing  as  hard 
in  a  night  as  it  usually  does  in  Pennsylvania  at  the  same  period 
of  winter.  We  have  had  several  snow  storms,  the  largest  of 
which  we  had  yesterday,  making  it  very  bad  for  the  shoeless 
soldiers  of  whom  their  name  is  legion.  If  the  United  States 
would  do  its  duty  to  the  soldier  one-half  as  faithful  as  the  sol 
dier  does  his  to  his  country,  we  need  not  now  be  literally  naked 
and  barefooted  as  we  are.  Our  neediness  has  only  been  brought 
about  by  the  culpable  neglect  of  some  of  the  whiskey-heads  at 
or  around  Washington,  for  we  know  that  the  government 
allows  ample  for  all  departments. 

More  anon,  T.  II.  P. 

BLAIN'S  CEOSS  ROADS,  EAST  TENN. 

January  14th,  1864. 

"'Tis  always  darkest,  the  hour  before  day,"  is  an  old  adage, 
and  in  our  case  a  true  one.  While  we  have  been  groping 
around  in  darkness  since  our  advent  in  this  department,  in  the 
shape  of  rags  and  an  empty  stomach,  a  ray  of  sunshine  peeped 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  467 

in  upon  us  yesterday.  We  were  the  recipients  of  a  few  articles 
in  the  way  of  clothing,  viz.  :  one  blanket  to  a  company,  two  or 
three  pairs  of  pants,  five  or  six  shirts,  one  pair  of  drawers  and 
a  few  pairs  of  boots  and  shoes,  also  to  each  company.  It  was 
a  Godsend  to  those  who  were  fortunate  enough  to  get  them  ; 
small  as  the  issue  was,  many  and  large  were  the  smiles  it  pro 
duced.  Now  the  "winter  of  our  discontent  is  made  glorious 
summer"  by  that  indefatigable  soldier,  Lieut.  S.  P.  Stephens, 
quartermaster  of  the  regiment,  who  is  away  endeavoring  to 
hunt  up  a  few  more  pairs  of  shoes  for  the  boys.  Some  may  think 
that  a  quartermaster's  post  is  to  be  envied,  but  I  say  to  all  who 
think  so,  get  a  post  of  that  kind  in  a  department  like  the  Cum 
berland,  and  try  it.  It  is  one  rather  to  be  pitied,  for  no  man 
racks  his  brains  more,  whereby  he  may  invent  some  means  to 
obtain  supplies  of  clothing  and  rations,  to  appease  the  clamor 
ous,  half  starved  and  naked  soldiers  who  surround  him  on 
every  side,  and  watches  with  eagle  eyes  his  every  move,  think 
ing  each  turn  or  "about  face  "  is  to  bring  something  to  eat  or 
wear.  Such  has  been  our  situation  from  morning  until  night, 
that  we  followed  with  our  eyes  every  move  of  that  true,  honest, 
and  faithful  soldier,  Quartermaster  S.  P.  Stephens.  He  has  well 
earned  the  glowing  title  of  a  warm  and  noble-hearted  man. 

Last  night  about  eight  o'clock  orders  were  received  to  leave 
for  home.  The  camp  was  very  quiet  previous  to  the  arrival  of 
the  order.  We  were  considerably  chagrined  a  few  days  ago  in 
seeing  the  48th  Regt.  P.  V.,  in  passing  our  camp  en  route  for 
home,  and  at  the  same  time,  a  rumor  got  underway  that  as  the 
48th  got  off  before  us,  we  would  have  to  remain  here  for  two 
or  three  months,  consequently  last  night,  around  the  camp  fires, 
speculation  ran  high  as  to  when  we  probably  might  get  off. 
As  I  said  above,  the  camp  was  quiet  when  the  order  "on  to 
Norristowrn  "  arrived,  but  as  soon  as  the  order  was  published, 
the  hum  of  voices  and  the  hearty  laughs  soon  betokened  that 
"good  news  in  camp"  was  well  received,  and  met  with  a 
hearty  response.  Every  one  was  busy,  the  major,  the  adju 
tant,  quartermaster,  orderly  sergeants — all,  all  were  busy  in 
folding  and  signing  their  re-enlistment  papers,  receiving  and 
despatching  orders,  reminding  one  of  an  editor's  sanctum  on 
an  election  day — everybody  elbowing  their  way  into  the  ad 
jutant's  office.  After  the  agreeable  surprise  was  over,  each 
one  sought  quiet  in  his  tent  to  dream  of  home,  and  by  midnight 
business  was  at  an  end,  and  we  enjoyed  an  unusually  good 


468     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

sound  sleep.  We  fully  expect  to  leave  to-morrow,  provided 
that  shoes  and  sufficient  rations  can  be  obtained  to-day  for  the 
march.  We  will  march  to  Nicholasville,  Ky.,  via  Cumber 
land  Gap,  Barboursville,  London,  and  Camp  Nelson,  each  man 
to  carry  six  days  rations  and  forty  rounds  of  ammunition.  The 
distance  to  march  is  191  miles,  and  we  expect  to  make  it  in 
about  sixteen  days'  from  the  time  we  start,  so  you  may  look  for 
the  old  51st  about  the  7th  of  February  to  make  "a  brilliant 
raid  "  into  the  very  heart  of  your  quiet  borough  of  Norristown. 
At  the  same  time  a  number  of  raids  may  be  made  by  that  sly 
little  citizen  soldier,  Cupid,  on  the  affections  of  the  "  dear  ones  " 
at  home.  I  hope  the  young  ladies  of  your  town  will  not  turn 
a  cold  shoulder  to  the  young  returned  veterans,  who  have  been 
absent  for  two  and  a  half  years  from  them,  undergoing  almost 
fabulous  trials,  privations,  and  sufferings  as  well  for  their  sakes 
as  to  sustain  that  "dear  old  flag." 

I  was  considerably  amused  the  other  day,  in  looking  over  the 
columns  of  the  Norristown  Republican,  when  my  eyes  rested  on 
a  letter  from  the  138th  Regt.  P.  V.  The  gifted  correspondent, 
signing  himself  "Frisket,"  says  "we  have  had  but  one  day's 
soft  bread  since  the  10th  of  October."  Now,  the  date  of  his 
letter  is  November  16th,  being  about  Jive  weeks  that  the  poor 
fellows  had  to  eat  "hard  tack,"  or  crackers.  What  would 
"  Frisket "  say  if  he  had  been  five  months  as  we  have,  without 
either  soft  bread  or  hard  bread,  (and  I  was  going  to  say  no 
bread  at  all,  but  that  would  be  "piling  it  on  a  little  thick;") 
only  black  musty  flour,  or  coarsely  ground  corn  meal,  and 
sometimes  receives  his  corn  on  the  cob  of  one  and  a  half  ears 
for  a  day's  rations,  and  that  he  would  have  to  grind  in  an  old 
ricketty  coffee  mill.  I  forgot  that  while  we  were  shut  up  in 
Kuoxville,  we  did  get  a  quarter  of  a  one  pound  loaf  of  soft 
doughy  bread,  made  from  bran,  and  as  choky  as  any  hedge 
pear.  "Frisket"  is  also  tired  of  wormy  crackers.  If  he  had 
them  here  to-day,  I  would  guarantee  him  twenty-five  cents 
apiece  for  his  haversack  full,  not  of  worms,  but  of  crackers. 
All  I  have  to  say  is,  if  "Frisket"  is  tired  of  wormy  crackers, 
to  send  them  to  us,  and  we  will  promise  to  waste  neither  a 
crumb  nor  a  worm.  But  enough,  for  soldiering  in  all  depart 
ments  has  its  joys  and  sorrows,  and  the  138th  is  not  exempt. 

Since  writing  my  last  the  51st  has  had  it  very  easy,  being 
only  twice  to  the  front  on  picket,  and  with  the  exception  of 
a  little  fatigue  duty  nothing  else  has  been  asked  of  us.  In 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  469 

fact,  we  have  long  been  unfit  for  duty,  being,  as  your  readers 
have  previously  been  informed,  entirely  destitute  of  clothing, 
and  in  no  way  able  to  resist  the  cold.  Our  rations,  also,  have 
been  too  meagre  to  do  duty  on,  and  it  takes  all  the  time  of  those 
whose  shoes  would  admit  of  it,  to  go  out  in  the  country  and 
bring  some  little  necessaries,  such  as  chopped  corn,  meat,  mo 
lasses,  &c.  Many  of  them  would  be  gone  two  days,  and  went 
fifteen  or  twenty  miles  to  obtain  enough  for  two  or  three  days, 
and  that  by  paying  untold  prices  for. 

A  lot  of  green  hides  (fresh  off  of  the  beeves)  were  sent  out 
to  us  this  week  for  the  shoeless,  to  make  themselves  coverings 
for  their  feet.  A  good  many  made  a  sort  of  moccasin  out  of 
them,  but  their  utility  were  destroyed  by  the  immense  weight 
of  them  when  marching,  but  as  there  have  been  shoes  issued 
and  more  expected  to-day,  there  will  be  no  further  need  of  the 
moccasins.  When  we  get  to  Camp  Nelson  every  man  will  re 
ceive  a  complete  outfit,  and  when  we  march  into  Norristown, 
we  will  not  look  as  if  we  had  been  nearly  naked  and  starved  as 
I  have  above  described. 

P.  S. — Since  writing  the  above  I  have  been  positively  assured 
that  we  leave  here  on  Sunday  morning,  the  17th  inst. 

T.  H.  P. 

When  the  rebel  General  Longstreet  crossed  the 
Tennessee  river,  his  whole  available  force  amounted 
to  about  twenty-eight  thousand  men,  who  were  equal 
if  not  superior  to  Stonewall  Jackson's  corps  of  "  the 
flower  of  the  Confederate  army."  Gen.  Burnside's 
total  efficient  force  was  a  trifle  over  eight  thousand 
men.  Long-street's  men  were  in  splendid  condition, 
healthy,  comfortably  clad,  well  fed  ;  had  the  sympa 
thies  of  the  citizens  ;  an  immense  amount  of  fixed 
and  unfixed  ammunition;  and  were  well  posted  up 
in  the  geography  of  the  country,  which  was  of  great 
advantage  to  him.  Besides,  his  whole  command 
was  composed  of  acknowledged  fighting  veterans. 
Burnside's  force,  on  the  contrary,  was  in  an  almost 
famished  condition.  Sickly,  nearly  naked,  and  dirty 
— betrayed  by  the  citizens — with  but  a  limited 


470     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIKST   KEGIMENT 

knowledge  of  the  country — destitute  of  all  kinds 
of  ammunition,  forage,  and  rations — and  only  a 
small  part  of  his  army  (the  9th  Corps)  were  fighting 
men.  The  larger  portion  was  composed  of  a  new 
corps  (the  23d)  of  Western  men,  who  were  enlisted 
for  six  months  only,  and  had  had  no  experience  in 
field  service.  Their  principal  duty  was  to  garrison 
such  posts  as  the  9th  Corps  had  taken.  Thus  was 
Gen.  Burnside  forced  into  a  terrible  struggle  against 
an  overwhelming  force  of  highly-disciplined  troops, 
under  the  command  of  one  of  the  South's  very  best 
fighting  generals.  The  contest,  unequal  as  it  was  in 
point  of  numbers  and  other  advantages,  was  never 
theless  entered  into  by  the  two  corps  with  a  deter 
mination  to  achieve  a  victory  at  all  hazards  or  fill  a 
true  soldier's  grave.  While  the  9th  and  23d  Corps 
were  greatly  inferior  in  numbers,  they  were  largely 
superior  in  intellect,  and  possessed  in  their  officers 
a  far  greater  engineering  talent,  in  which,  beyond 
cavil,  Col.  Hartranft  was  the  fountain-head.  It  was 
he  who  assisted  Gen.  Burnside,  in  his  best  works  of 
engineering,  to  a  successful  result.  It  was  through 
the  true  perfection,  and  the  carrying  out  of  all 
plans,  that  the  city  of  Knoxville,  with  its  band  of 
heroes,  did  not  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Confed 
erate  army.  No  part  of  the  entire  Union  army  was 
handled  with  more  skill  and  bravery  by  its  officers 
than  was  that  small  besieged  force  in  Knoxville. 
All  hail  to  Burnside !  All  honor  to  Hartranft ! 

On  November  3d,  1863,  Lieuts.  Jacob  P.  Brooke, 
of  Co.  F,  and  John  S.  Moore,  of  Co.  A,  left  their 
homes,  where  they  had  been  on  a  leave  of  absence, 
to  rejoin  their  regiment.  But  as  the  enemy  occu 
pied  the  country  between  Cumberland  Gap  and 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      471 

where  the  51st  was  stationed,  they  did  not  succeed 
in  reaching  their  companies  until  the  18th  Decem 
ber,  1863,  but  just  in  time  to  take  part  in  a  heavy 
skirmish  which  the  51st  was  engaged  in  at  Blain's 
Cross  Eoads,  East  Tennessee.  Their  departure  from 
home  was  noticed  in  the  paper  published  in  their 
town,  viz. : 

REJOINING  THE  ARMY. — Lieuts.  John  S.  Moore  and  Brooke, 
start  this  week  to  go  to  their  regiment,  the  51st,  now  stationed 
near  Knoxville,  Tennessee  ;  and  we  have  understood  that  they 
will  have  to  march  between  two  and  three  hundred  miles, 
unless  they  should  accidentally  fall  in  with  teams  going  on  the 
same  route — as  there  is  no  public  conveyance  for  that  distance 
to  the  present  position  of  our  regiment.  Over  this  long  road 
our  men  had  to  travel,  day  after  day,  "foot-sore  and  weary.'* 
At  home,  we  often  wonder  how  men  are  enabled  to  endure 
such  marching;  for  many  of  these  men  were  not  at  all  accus 
tomed  to  hard  toil  before  they  enrolled  themselves  for  the  de 
fence  of  our  flag  and  the  suppression  of  this  fearfully  wicked 
rebellion.  Yet,  our  brave  heroes  endure  all  these  hardships 
without  murmuring — for  it  has  to  be  done — and  is  a  part  of 
that  plan  that  must  be  gone  through  with  to  reach  the  end,  the 
supremacy  of  our  laws\)ver  the  whole  of  the  United  States. 

Through  the  disarrangements  of  the  mails  and  tele 
graph,  the  friends  of  the  regiment  were  unable  to 
obtain  any  reliable  information  concerning  the 
whereabouts  of  the  5 1st,  or  of  its  doings  during  the 
siege,  and  every  little  item  that  appeared  in  any  of 
the  newspapers  of  the  day  was  greedily  snatched 
up  and  republished  in  other  papers,  so  as  to  let  the 
public  form  their  own  conclusions.  The  following 
are  clipped  from  one  published  November  24th,  1863, 
during  the  siege,  no  doubt  relieving  the  minds  of 
many  : 

ARMY  OF  THE  OHIO. — We  have  further  exciting  news  from 
East  Tennessee  this  morning.  Parson  Brownlow  has  found 
it  necessary  to  leave;  Knoxville,  and  sends  a  despatch  to  Cin 
cinnati  stating  that  fighting  was  in  progress  "  all  about  Knox 
ville."  A  previous  despatch,  from  General  Burnside  himself, 
conveys  the  idea  that  everything  was  going  well  with  us,  and 
that  ultimate  victory  was  certain.  It  is  quite  probable  that  a 


472     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

heavy  battle  lias  been  fought  at  Knoxville,  and  the  seige  of 
that  city  is  now  going  on.  As  the  place  is  fortified  to  some 
extent,  it  is  believed  that  the  rebels  will  not  be  able  to  dislodge 
our  forces  without  great  loss,  and  probably  defeat.  The  latest 
reports  by  mail  say  that  Generals  Burnside  and  Hartsuff  were 
concentrating  their  forces  to  resist  the  advance  of  Gen.  Long- 
street. 

"  FROM  Knoxville  we  receive  nothing  definite.  Gen.  Long- 
street  does  not  appear  yet  to  have  raised  the  siege  ;  for,  if  he 
had,  we  certainly  should  have  intelligence  of  it  from  Gen. 
Burnside.  There  is  no  communication  between  Cumberland 
Gap  and  Knoxville  yet.  Gen.  Foster  is  idle  on  the  Clinch  river, 
twenty  miles  from  the  Gap,  where  he  has  but  a  handful  of 
cavalry.  He  makes  no  attempt  to  advance  any  farther.  A 
Federal  force  of  three  thousand  is  said  to  have  left  Chattanooga 
to  aid  Burnside,  though  the  route  taken  is  not  very  evident. 
The  Confederates  are  represented  to  be  in  strong  force  at  Lou- 
don,  twenty-three  miles  west  of  Knoxville,  and  at  Kingston, 
ten  miles  northwest  of  London.  Cannonading  has  been  heard 
in  that  direction,  so  that  it  would  seem  the  expedition  had 
marched  over  the  Cumberland  Mountains,  and  was  in  conflict 
with  the  enemy." 

And  again,  another  item  in  the  same  paper  of  an 
other  date : 

*'  SIEGE  OF  KNOXVILLE. — At  the  late  battle  of  Fort  Sanders, 
the  Fifty-first  regiment  was  engaged.  We  have  made  an  ex 
tract  from  a  correspondent  of  the  Philadelphia  Inquirer  of  the 
battle,  which  will  be  found  in  another  column.  It  will  be  seen 
that  our  regiment  had  three  killed  and  one  wounded.  We 
have  understood  that  all  these  persons  were  in  the  companies 
from  Easton.  How  covered  with  honor  are  these  brave  and 
faithful  veterans  of  the  glorious  old  Fifty-first !" 

And  of  still  another  date  : 

"FIFTY-FIRST. — We  have  not  heard  anything  from  this 
regiment  for  some  time  past.  The  report  that  portions  of 
it  had  been  captured  do  not  seem  to  have  much  truth  in  them. 
The  reason  for  not  hearing  from  them  is  probably  that  their 
position  is  so  far  removed  from  the  conveniences  of  mail  routes 
that  the  receipt  of  letters  is  necessarily  uncertain." 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEEES.  473 


CHAPTEE   X. 

Destruction  of  the  pontoon  bridge — Approach  of  the  enemy — 
A  retreat  ordered — General  confusion — Burn  side  arrives  on 
the  field — Change  of  programme — Advance  to  Loudon — 
Fighting  and  falling  back— Skilful  manoeuvring — Severe 
marching  and  suffering — Campbell's  station— Magnificent 
battle  scene — Repulse  of  Longstreet — Night  march  to  Knox- 
ville — Losses  in  the  regiment. 

THE  51st,  on  the  12th  day  of  November,  worked 
faithfully  to  get  the  pontoons  laid  across  the  Holston 
river  at  Lenoir  station,  in  the  sweet  anticipation  of 
going  over  the  river  to  have  a  new  scope  of  country 
through  which  to  forage,  in  order  to  obtain  a  few 
more  mouthfuls  of  rations  to  add  to  their  already 
meagre  supply ;  but  in  this  they  were  again  doomed 
to  disappointment,  for  scarcely  was  the  last  boat  laid 
when  orders  were  issued  to  cut  the  bridge  loose, 
scuttle  the  boats,  and  sink  them  in  the  deep  waters 
of  the  Holston.  Astonishment  was  depicted  on 
their  emaciated  countenances  as  they  silently  obeyed 
those  severe  but  highly  necessary  orders.  Their 
cups,  brimful  of  joy,  were  dashed  to  pieces  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye!  Speculation  ran  high  as  to 
the  cause.  Were  the  "Johnnies"  coming  ?  some 
thing  of  the  kind  must  be  up!  The  "Johnnies" 
were  there — but  not  in  any  great  force,  as  only  a  party 
of  rebel  cavalry  were  reconnoitering,  but  that  was 
enough  to  tell  that  their  main  body  was  not  far  off. 

The  laying  of  the  bridge  had  been  watched 
closely  by  the  citizens,  and  as  soon  as  it  was  under 
way,  information  had  been  given  by  some  of  them. 


to  the  rebels,  though  the   Union   scouts  discovered 

21* 


474     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

them  in  time  to  prevent  a  surprise  ;  yet  our  pickets 
on  the  other  side  were  driven  in,  and  the  pontoon 
bridge  had  to  be  destroyed. 

On  the  next  night,  the  13th,  orders  came  into 
camp  to  be  ready  to  move  at  a  moment's  notice. 
Consequently,  by  5  o'clock  A.  M.  of  the  14th,  the 
orders  were  given  to  strike  tents  and  send  all  the 
baggage  to  the  rear,  and  the  assembly  was  beaten 
for  the  regiment  to  "fall  in  on  the  color  line."  The 
troops  that  were  stationed  at  Loudon  began  to  pour 
into  Lenoir  and  form  line  of  battle.  It  began  to  be 
evident  a  battle  was  in  embryo.  Artillery  teams 
and  ambulances  were  plunging  through  the  rain 
and  rnud,  with  their  heads  turned  towards  Knox- 
ville.  A  retreat  was  on  the  tapis. 

Gen.  Burnside  had  removed  his  headquarters  to 
Knoxville,  and  Col.  Siegfried,  of  the  48th  P.  V., 
was  in  command  of  the  division  of  which  the  51st 
P.  Y.  was  in.  Everything  seemed  to  go  wrong. 
But,  some  time  towards  noon  of  the  14th,  Gen.  Burn- 
side  made  his  appearance,  in  a  special  car,  on  the 
scene.  As  soon  as  the  car  stopped,  and  while  on 
the  platform,  he  exclaimed,  in  no  unmeaning  tone, 
"What  does  all  this  mean,  General?"  addressing 
himself  to  a  Gen.  White,  who  was  in  command  of 
the  movement.  Gen.  White's  reply  was,  "We  are 
retreating,  sir  !"  Gen.  Burnside  replied,  "  I'll  soon 
stop  thiJt,  sir;  halt  your  command,  and  about-face 
that  artillery  !"  Gen.  Burnside's  face  now  flushed 
with  anger,  and  it  became  evident  that  he  was  going 
to  risk  a  battle  at  such  an  inauspicious  moment. 
The  whole  army  was  in  great  confusion,  not  through 
any  fear,  but  on  account  of  the  inefficiency  of  some 
of  the  higher  grade  officers,  who  did  not  know  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      475 

meaning  of  the  commands  they  gave.  Gen.  Burn- 
side  took  the  whole  cause  of  the  commotion  in  at 
one  view,  and  assumed  command  of  the  field  in 
person.  In  fifteen  minutes  thereafter  he  had  re 
stored  order,  and  turned  the  retreat  into  an  advance 
on  the  enemy  opposite  Loudon.  He  laid  his  plans, 
and  deployed  his  troops  in  such  positions  as  to 
check  the  enemy  should  he  bi>  coming.  Excepting 
the  2d  Division  of  the  9th  Corps,  the  whole  force 
moved  up  the  railroad  about  half  a  mile  and  formed 
line  of  battle,  awaiting  the  approach  of  "the  enemy. 
Holding  themselves  in  readiness  all  day  in  a  drench 
ing  rain;  they  slept  on  their  arms  that  night.  But, 
about  2  o'clock  on  Sunday  morning,  the  15th,  the 
troops  were  ordered  to  advance.  The  drum  corps 
beat  the  assembly,  and  the  column,  instead  of 
marching  to  Knoxville,  were  now  on  the  road  to 
Loudon  to  meet  the  advancing  enemy.  The  dis 
tance  was  about  six  miles — the  roads  in  a  horrible 
condition,  the  men  hungry  and  wet,  but  in  high 
spirits,  as  also  was  their  commander,  Gen.  Burn- 
side.  The  enemy's  skirmishers  were  met  on  a  high 
hill  to  the  east  of  Loudon,  just  at  daybreak. 
Heavy  skirmishing  ensued,  and  their  further  ad 
vance  was  checked.  Benjamin's  battery  obtained  a 
good  position,  and  held  it  until  the  enemy's  full 
strength  was  felt.  About  10  A.  M.  Longstreet  re 
inforced  his  skirmishers  by  a  full  brigade,  and 
forced  Burnside  to  fall  back.  To  keep  up  the  ap 
pearance  of  a  heavy  force,  Burnside  deployed 
nearly  his  whole  command  as  skirmishers,  which 
gave  him  a  chance  of  falling  back  in  splendid  order. 
The  51st  was  deployed  as  skirmishers  on  the  ex 
treme'  right  of  the  line,  with  its  right  skirting  the 


476      HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

road  from  Loudon  towards  Lenoir,  reaching  Lenoir 
about  5  P.  M.  During  this  retrograde  movement 
the  troops  on  the  left,  and  left  of  centre,  were 
pressed  by  the  enemy  most  severely ;  and  as  Burn- 
side  had  made  a  halt  at  Lenoir,  Longstreet  endeav 
ored  to  flank  our  left  in  order  to  cut  us  oft'  from  our 
works  in  Knoxville.  We  were  drawing  rations 
while  at  halt  at  Lenoir,  preparatory  to  our  night's 
retreat.  While  doing  so,  the  enemy  poured  volley 
after  volley  of  musketry  into  our  lines  from  the 
Kingston  road,  with  an  occasional  shot  thrown  in 
among  the  teams,  producing  considerable  excite 
ment.  While  this  excitement  was  at  its  height,  it 
was  discovered  that  our  troops  had,  from  some  un 
known  cause,  left  the  Kingston  road  open  to  the 
advance  of  the  enemy  free  of  all  opposition.  The 
discovery  of  this  blunder  was  made  by  Gen.  Fer- 
rero,  who  commanded  a  brigade.  He  immediately 
reported  his  discovery  to  Gen.  Burnside,  in  the 
presence  of  Gen.  White,  whose  duty  it  was  to  have 
kept  that  road  well  guarded  by  his  command. 
Burnside  was  astonished  at  such  a  proceeding,  and 
ordered  White  to  send  troops  to  the  left  and  hold 
the  road.  ButFerrero  volunteered  to  take  his  brig 
ade  up  the  hill  to  regain  possession  of  the  road  if 
Burnside  would  consent.  Gen.  White  scowled  at 
the  idea ;  yet  Burnside  knew  Ferrero  too  well  to 
doubt  his  bravery  and  sagacity,  and  gave  his  con 
sent.  In  less  time  than  it  takes  to  narrate  it,  Fer 
rero  had  his  brigade  on  the  move  toward  the  road, 
and  by  his  bull  terrier  propensities  he  succeeded  in 
regaining  the  possession  of  the  Kingston  road,  and 
thus  saving  us  from  being  cut  off  from  Knoxville. 
It  was  now  drawing  close  on  to  evening,  and 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      477 

the  51st  lay  near  by  the  railroad  track  at  Lenoir, 
awaiting  orders,  resting,  drawing  and  cooking  five 
days  rations — while  passing  events,  on  all  sides, 
began  to  fill  them  with  gloom.  When  they  per 
ceived  the  tall  form  of  their  old  colonel,  Hartranft, 
a  murmur  of  satisfaction  went  through  the  whole 
regiment,  although  the  men  knew  that  he  would  not 
take  command  of  the  51st;  nor  did  they  desire  it, 
for  they  reposed  entire  confidence  in  their  present 
commander,  Major  William  J.  Bolton ;  but  they 
wanted  him  to  take  command  of  their  division, 
which  he  did,  relieving  Col.  Siegfried.  And  now, 
being  officered  as  they  wished,  their  gloomy  feel 
ings  were  dispelled — Burnside  commanding  the 
whole  movement  in  person,  Hartranft  our  division, 
Lieut.  Col.  Schall  our  brigade,  and  Maj.  Bolton  the 
regiment,  what  more  could  we  ask  for  while  fight 
ing  ?  Being  thus  officered  fully  implied  victory. 

At  a  little  before  dark,  the  cars  at  Lenoir  station 
were  loaded  with  all  cumbersome  articles,  and  at 
once  dispatched  back  to  Knoxville  ;  also  the  wagon 
trains,  etc.  As  soon  as  everything  cumbersome  was 
out  of  the  way,  orders  were  given  to  march  on  to 
Knoxville  that  night,  a  distance  of  twenty -two  miles. 
The  enemy  was  kept  in  check,  but  the  fighting  for 
the  Kingston  road  was  severe  and  constant.  The 
enemy,  keeping  on  the  range  of  hills  on  our  left, 
seemed  determined  to  outflank  us,  while  Ferrero 
stubbornly  contested  every  inch,  and  succeeded  in 
keeping  back  the  rebel  horde  sufficiently  to  enable 
us  to  trudge  through  the  mud  of  that  night.  Our 
progress  was  terribly  slow.  Leaving  Lenoir  at 
6  P.  M.,  we  only  reached  the  19  mile  post  on  the 
railroad  at  6  A.  M.  of  the  16th,  making  but  three 


478     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

miles  in  twelve  hours  !  Who  is  there,  living  now, 
that  participated  in  that  three  mile  night  march, 
that  has  forgotten,  or  ever  will  forget  it?  No  pen, 
however  eloquent,  can  describe  the  toiling,  the  suf 
ferings,  of  both  body  and  mind  during  that  terrible 
dark  night,  with  the  fiends  of  rebellion  firing  and 
yelling  like  so  many  devils  close  on  our  heels.  Oh, 
the  suspense  of  those  dark  hours  !  Gen.  Hartranft, 
can  you  forget  it?  Gen.  William  J.  Bolton,  can 
you  ?  Men  of  the  51st  P.  V.,  you  never  will,  while 
memory  holds  its  seat  in  the  throbbing  brain. 

The  51st  P.  V.  was  detailed  to  assist  Benjamin's 
battery  of  20-pounders  through  the  mud.  One 
and  a  half  inch  ropes,  of  two  hundred  feet  in  length, 
were  attached  to  the  guns;  and  with  the  whole  regi 
ment  of  men,  and  twelve  to  sixteen  battery -horses 
at  a  single  gun,  it  required  their  uidted  strength  to 
drag  it  through  the  mud  for  a  few  feet  at  a  time. 
After  getting  a  gun  dragged  about  one  hundred  and 
fifty  or  two  hundred  yards,  it  would  be  left  standing, 
and  all  would  return  to  work  up  another  one  -and 
so  on,  until  the  last  one  would  be  brought  up — then 
begin  again — and  so  on  until  the  bottomless  mire 
was  wrought  through  ;  the  enemy  harassing  us  as 
much  as  they  could,  fighting  going  on  all  around  us 
except  directly  in  our  front  and  on  our  right.  To 
leave  the  guns  sticking  in  the  mud,  would  have  been 
fatal  to  us,  for  our  salvation  laid  in  keeping  posses 
sion  of  that  now  more  than  priceless  battery.  The 
men  worked,  pulled,  and  dragged  as  men  never  did 
before.  The  poor  jaded  and  hungry  horses  ap 
peared  to  know  the  necessity  of  getting  the  guns 
along,  for,  worn  out  as  they  were,  the  poor  beasts 
labored  with  a  will  that  seemed  akin  to  reason. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  479 

Had  they  proved  baulky  and  refused  us  their  enor 
mous  strength,  our  fate  would  certainly  have  been 
Andersonville  or  Libby. 

Daylight  of  the  16th  found  us  but  three  miles 
from  where  we  started  the  night  before,  but  it  found 
us  through  the  worst  part  of  the  mud,  with  the  ad 
vantage  of  being  able  to  pick  our  way. 

At  or  near  Campbell's  station,  the  roads  from 
Loudon  and  Kingston  made  a  junction,  and  then 
formed  the  road  leading  into  the  city  of  Knoxville. 
To  get  possession  of  the  forks  of  this  road,  was  the 
main  object  of  both  chieftains,  Burnside  and  Long- 
street.  Could  Longstreet  gain  it  first,  Burnside 
would  riot  have  had  a  road  by  which  to  reach  the 
city,  as  there  was  but  the  one  that  ran  in  that  di 
rection,  and  escape  would  have  been  impossible,  at 
least  with  artillery  and  caissons.  Longstreet,  fully 
alive  to  the  importance  of  the  possession  of  that 
point,  deployed  his  skirmishers  more  to  our  right, 
with  the  view  of  forcing  Burnside  to  strengthen  that 
part  of  his  line  in  order  to  weaken  his  left,  that  the 
enemy  might  throw  a  force  on  this  road  sufficient  to 
crush  our  resistance  and  gain  possession.  The 
enemy's  advance  rushed  on  like  an  avalanche,  pour 
ing  volley  after  volley  into  our  rear,  and  the  rear 
returning  volley  for  volley  until  the  junction  was 
reached.  Hartranft  was  entrusted  with  the  extreme 
left.  Burnside  remained  in  the  centre,  on  foot,  and 
the  race  was  drawing  to  a  close  which  was  for  life 
or  death.  We  have  reached  the  road.  A  halt  is 
made.  Hartranft  double-quicks  his  division,  and 
files  left  into  a  cornfield  to  the  right  of  t.ie  Kingston 
thoroughfare,  and  is  about  flanking  a  division  of 
the  enemy  in  our  rear,  when  the  whole  column  of 


480     HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

both  armies  came  to  a  halt — and  the  battle  raged 
most  furiously  for  about  an  hour. 

While  this  preliminary  fight  was  going  on,  our 
artillery  was  taking  the  advantage  of  the  contest, 
which  was  wholly  between  the  infantry,  by  se 
curing  a  splendid  position.  It  was  near  noon,  and 
thus  far  our  troops  had  been  successful  in  holding 
their  ground.  After  the  51st  had  double-quicked 
into  the  cornfield,  CoL  Hartranft  discovered  the 
enemy  advancing  on  him  with  an  overwhelming 
force,  for  the  purpose  of  flanking  him,  and  cutting 
him  and  his  division  off  from  the  main  body.  But 
in  this  they  were  foiled,  for  by  this  time  the  artil 
lery  had  got  into  position,  and  he  double-quicked 
his  command  to  the  support  of  the  two  batteries, 
Benjamin's  and  Voncleis'  15th  Indiana,  thereby 
leading  his  pursuing  enemy  directly  under  the 
range  of  the  guns  of  the  15th  Indiana.  Finding 
they  were  outgeneraled  in  that  move,  they  quickly 
fell  back  out  of  harm's  way. 

This  was  a  most  magnificent  battle-field.  It  was 
in  the  form  of  a  huge  basin.  Burnside,  Hartranft, 
the  two  batteries,  the  51st  P.  V.,  and  the  51st  N.  Y., 
occupied  that  part  of  the  rim  of  the  basin  nearest 
to  Knoxville.  This  was  the  objective  point  that 
Longstreet  directed  his  best  energies  against.  The 
enemy  occupied  that  part  of  the  rim  of  the  basin 
farthest  from  Knoxville,  directly  opposite  to  that 
of  Burnside.  A  house,  barn,  and  other  outbuild 
ings  occupied  the  centre  of  the  hollow  of  the  basin, 
or  rather  the  right  of  centre.  Between  those  build 
ings  and  the  enemy  stood  an  orchard  of  large  apple 
trees.  The  rim  of  the  basin,  to  the  right  of  the 
buildings,  was  skirted  with  a  heavy  forest,  that  ran 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEKS.  481 

off  to  the  right  and  lost  itself  to  view.  From  the 
rear  of  Longstreet  all  the  way  round  to  within  a  few 
yards  of  our  left,  was  also  a  dense  forest,  which 
ended  abruptly  on  a  high  bluff.  The  face  of  the 
landscape  was  broken  by  a  deep  ravine  between  the 
woods  and  the  batteries. 

As  soon  as  the  artillery  had  got  into  position, 
Maj.  Bolton  detailed  Capt.  Bisbing  and  about  two- 
thirds  of  the  regiment  to  skirmish  in  the  woods  to 
wards  the  enemy  on  our  left,  because  a  whole  brigade 
of  rebels  moved  off'  in  that  direction  and  had  become 
lost  to  view.  The  51st  started  directly  in  front  of  the 
battery,  and  skirmished  through  the  field  down  to 
the  very  centre  of  the  hollow,  and  then  filed  to  the 
left  into  a  field  of  tall  dead  grass,  full  five  to  six  feet 
high,  that  adjoined  the  woods.  This  woods  was 
very  dense  with  underbrush  and  briars.  After 
reaching  the  edge  of  the  woods,  Bisbing  commanded 
"Lie  down."  After  remaining  in  that  position, 
completely  out  of  sight,  for  about  half  an  hour,  the 
snapping  of  brush  as  if  trod  upon  was  distinctly 
heard  on  the  right,  in  the  woods.  In  a  few  minutes 
Bisbing  discovered  two  brigades  of  rebels  quietly 
sneaking  through  the  woods,  as  if  their  object  was 
to  flank  our  batteries.  He  watched  them  intently, 
until  they  had  disappeared  on  the  other  side  of  the 
hill  or  rim,  and  thinking  their  object  was  to  move 
around  to  the  rear  of  the  battery,  and,  by  the  low 
ground  outside  of  the  rim,  get  up  within  a  few  yards 
of  the  guns  before  they  could  be  seen,  he  com 
manded  "Rise  up,"  and  deployed  as  skirmishers 
through  the  woods  up  to  its  abrupt  termination ; 
but  what  became  of  the  enemy  could  not  be  deter 
mined.  After  returning  to  their  post  at  the  battery, 


4:82     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

the  battle  became  highly  interesting.  Burnside  and 
Hartranft  stood  side  and  side  by  the  guns,  and  gave 
their  orders  with  such  coolness  that  a  person  unused 
to  such  sights  would  think  that  they  were  alike  dead 
to  all  feelings  of  humanity. 

Longstreet  endeavored  to  get  a  "  gray-horse  bat 
tery"  into  position  on  the  right  of  his  centre  at  the 
edge  of  the  woods.  He  first  sent  two  brigades  down 
into  the  bottom  of  the  hollow,  where  they  formed 
line  of  battle,  ostensibly  with  the  object  of  charging 
on  our  artillery,  and,  in  order  to  accomplish  this, 
his  battery  was  to  support  them  by  shelling  us  away 
from  our  guns,  which  then  would  fall  an  easy  prey 
into  their  hands;  but  as  soon  as  their  white  horses 
were  seen  to  emerge  from  the  woods,  our  guns  were 
turned  on  them  with  fury.  They  succeeded  in  un- 
limbering  one  gun  but  no  more:  they  fired  two  or 
three  shots,  when  they  limbered  up  again,  and  left  at 
full  gallop,  finding  it  impossible  to  live  under  such 
firing  as  our  gunners  displayed.  The  two  brigades 
still  held  their  position ;  none  of  our  officers  ap 
peared  to  pay  any  attention  to  them,  but  they  were 
watched  close.  The  enemy  endeavored  to  get  an 
other  position  in  the  orchard,  and  Burnside  allowed 
them  to  do  so  for  a  few  minutes  only.  After  getting 
fixed,  as  they  thought,  to  suit  themselves,  they  be 
gan  shelling  our  batteries  and  the  51st  with  tremen 
dous  velocity ;  they  then  sent  a  body  of  troops  into 
the  woods  on  the  left  of  the  house,  &c.,  to  flank  us 
on  our  right  and  get  possession  of  the  Knoxville 
road  ;  but  as  they  emerged  from  the  woods,  their 
cover,  they  were  rather  stunned  in  finding  that  their 
progress  was  checked,  for  Burnside  had  already  a 
strong  line  lying  on  the  ground  as  a  precaution 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  483 

against  any  such  a  move  on  the  part  of  the  enemy. 
A  brilliant  skirmish  ensued  between  the  two  antag 
onists,  and  although  the  enemy  was  far  the  stronger 
force,  yet  our  troops,  with  the  aid  of  our  batteries, 
succeeded  in  making  them  beat  a  hasty  retreat,  and 
abandon  all  further  attempts  by  that  flank. 

Burnside's  attention  was  now  turned  on  the  rebel 
battery  in  the  orchard  that  had  been  sending  an 
amazing  quantity  of  rifled  shells  in  and  around  the 
two  batteries  and  the  51st  P.  V. ;  in  fact,  no  atten 
tion  had  been  paid  to  the  rebel  artillery  previous  to 
this;  but  it  received  the  undivided  attention  of 
Burnside  and  Hartranft  now,  for  they  were  literally 
covered  from  head  to  foot  with  dirt  thrown  over 
them  by  the  enemy's  shot  and  shell,  as  they  came 
ploughing  through  the  ground  at  their  feet.  The 
two  batteries  (Benjamin's  and  the  15th  Indiana) 
opened  in  splendid  style  on  their  enemy,  clearing 
the  orchard  of  all  rebels  in  less  than  ten  minutes. 
They  then  made  another  effort  to  get  their  battery 
into  position  in  the  corner  of  the  woods  where  they 
had  made  their  first  attempt ;  as  soon  as  they  showed 
their  "gray  horses"  at  the  edge  of  the  woods,  our 
batteries  hurried  them  out  of  that  by  a  few  well- 
directed  shots.  The  51st  P.  V.  was  again  sent  for 
ward  to  skirmish  the  woods  to  our  left.  The  two 
brigades  of  rebels  still  being  in  line  of  battle  in  the 
hollow,  attention  now  was  turned  to  them,  and  they 
received  a  number  of  shells  right  in  the  midst  of 
their  ranks,  thinning  them  somewhat,  and  scattering 
them  like  a  flock  of  sheep.  They  sought  shelter  in 
the  woods  on  their  right.  The  51st  was  in  the  same 
woods  skirmishing  along  the  top  of  the  rirn  or  hill 
towards  its  abrupt  termination.  The  regiment 


484     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

scarcely,  however,  reached  the  battery,  when  the  hill 
they  had  just  left  was  swarming  with  the  foe,  who 
seemed  to  defy  the  whole  of  Burnside's  force.  They 
came  out  of  the  woods  and  stood  in  the  clear  field 
only  a  few  yards  from  our  guns,  and  cast  an  impu 
dent  gaze  along  the  whole  of  our  rear.  A  few  men 
of  the  51st  could  not  resist  the  impulse  to  fire,  and, 
doing  so  without  orders,  they  "  knocked"  a  few  of 
them,  when  our  artillery  belched  forth  death  by  the 
wholesale.  They  then  escaped  back  to  their  cover 
in  the  woods. 

One  little  incident  is  worthy  of  notice  here.  Sergt. 
David  Long,  of  Co.  D,  being  seized  with  the  impulse 
to  fire  when  the  enemy  exposed  themselves  so  near 
us,  dropped  on  one  knee  and  fired.  The  ball  must 
have  entered  his  foe's  heart,  for  he  sprang  into  the 
air  about  two  feet,  and  fell  dead  without  moving  a 
limb.  It  is  very  uncertain  for  a  soldier  to  say  he 
knows  that  he  killed  one  in  battle,  yet  it  will  not  be 
incorrect  for  Sergt.  Long  to  say  so. 

Night  was  now  closing  our  day's  work.  We  had 
kept  the  enemy  at  bay  for  two  days  and  a  night, 
and  another  half  hour  of  daylight  would  in  all 
probability  have  seen  us  a  captured  army.  The 
enemy  was  tightening  his  coils  around  us ;  cowards 
had  began  to  sneak  off  undiscovered  to  Knoxville ; 
our  lines  were  becoming  weaker;  the  enemy  closing 
gradually  in  on  us;  they,  in  number,  three  to  our 
one ;  they,  with  full  supply  of  ammunition ;  we, 
nearly  out — for  a  great  part  of  our  artillery  ammu 
nition  had  been  thrown  out  of  the  caissons  to  lighten 
the  weight.  Here  we  were,  sixteen  miles  from 
Knoxville — a  dark  and  muddy  road  before  us — 
worn  out  with  fatigue  and  hunger;  having  had  no 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      485 

sleep  for  forty-two  hours,  and  no  chance  even  to  make 
a  cup  of  coffee  since  the  Sunday  evening  previous, 
and  three  hours  sleep  was  all  we  had  for  four  days 
and  nights  ;  but  the  boys  were  all  in  high  spirits, 
for  they  saw  that  by  showing  a  bold  front,  they 
could  accomplish  much.  The  number  of  wounded 
on  our  side  was  large,  but  they  were  nearly  all  sent 
into  the  city  ;  so  was  everything  else  that  was  likely 
to  cause  a  minute's  loss  of  time  on  the  retreat;  and 
when  night  began  to  spread  her  sable  mantle  over 
the  bloody  field,  our  forces  were  ready  to  withdraw 
at  a  moment's  notice.  At  last  the  order  came,  and 
posting  a  strong  rear-guard,  the  line  resolved  itself 
into  a  marching  column,  and  quietly  withdrew  in 
good  order  from  the  scenes  of  that  day's  toils  and 
dangers,  leaving  its  killed,  a  few  wounded,  and  a  good 
many  prisoners  in  the  enemy's  hands.* 

Burnside's  command  left  Campbell's  station  at  8 
P.  Mv  and  marched  to  the  outskirts  of  the  city,  where 
it  arrived  at  4J  A.  M.  of  the  17th,  foot-sore  and 
weary.  Scarcely  had  the  column  came  to  a  halt,  when 
the  men  sunk  down  to  the  ground  from  sheer  ex 
haustion,  and  fell  asleep  without  hunting  for  any 
kind  of  a  comfortable  place  to  lay.  They  had 
forded  several  streams  and  were  wet  up  to  their  arm 
pits,  still  sleep  stole  over  their  benumbed  senses  and 
they  one  and  all  slept  the  sweet  sleep  of  the  cradled 
innocent.  Nothing  of  interest  occurred  on  that 
night's  march  excepting  the  loss  of  a  lew  worn  out 

*  The  following  is  a  list  of  casualties,  as  far  as  could  be  ob 
tained  : 

Co.  B. — Wounded — Private  Beni.  Reilly.  Captured — Wm. 
Albert. 

Co.  C. — Wounded — Corp.  Wm.  Robinson. 

Co.  I. — Captured — Private  George  E.  Peters. 

Co.  K.—  Wounded— Sergts.  Wm.  S.  Melliok  and  Frank  B. 
Sterner.  Captured— Henry  C.  Deutler. 


486     HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

troops,  who  found  it  impossible  to  keep  up  with  the 
retreating  column  and  fell  prisoners  into  the  enemy's 
hands,  and  an  occasional  pressure  of  the  enemy's  ad 
vance  on  our  rear-guard.  As  day  began  to  make  its 
appearance  on  Tuesday,  the  17th  of  November,  the 
drums  beat  the  reveille,  but  so  sound  did  the  men 
sleep  that  only  few,  if  any,  heard  it.  Shortly  after 
the  drums  ceased,  the  stentorian  voice  of  Maj.  Bolton 
was  heard  commanding  "fall  in;"  as  if  by  magic 
every  man  sprang  to  his  feet  arid  seized  his  gun. 
It  seemed  as  if  each  one  had  lain  down  with  the  in 
tention  that  no  other  sound  but  "fall  in"  was  to 
awaken  them. 


CHAPTEE  XI. 

The  51st  entrenched — Building  and  breaking  of  the  dam — 
Skill  and  daring  of  Sergeants  Parker  and  Fair — Picket  fight 
ing  and  house  burning — Grand  and  awful  scenes  of  fire  and 
battle — Sufferings  of  the  men — Rumors  of  relief— An  assault 
by  the  rebels — Retaking  of  the  picket  pits  by  Schall's  brigade 
— Constant  fighting  and  conflagration. 

THE  brigade  under  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  formed  in 
line,  and  then  marched  by  the  flank  into  the  city, 
and  through  to  the  other  side,  where  it  took  up  a 
position  on  the  extreme  right  of  the  town,  in  front, 
almost,  of  the  railroad  depot,  on  an  elevation  that 
presented  a  fine  view  of  the  surrounding  country. 

Shortly  after  getting  into  our  position,  Col.  Hart- 
ranft  impressed  all  the  contrabands  found  running  in 
the  streets,  and  placing  picks  and  shovels  in  their 
hands,  he  bade  them  go  to  work  in  the"  trenches, 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEES.  487 

and  by  noon  they  had  accomplished  a  part  sufficient 
to  allow  the  51st  P.  V.  to  take  possession.  Thus  on 
the  17th  of  November,  1863,  was  built  the  first 
regular  entrenchments  in  which  they  ever  fought. 
They  had  been  in  pits  on  the  picket  line  in  front  of 
Jackson,  Miss.,  but  not  as  regular  breastworks  on 
the  main  line.  This  event  filled  them  with  pleasure, 
for  now  they  knew  they  need  not  be  exposed  need 
lessly  to  the  enemy's  balls. 

They  began  now  to  see  the  fruits  of  their  hard  toil 
ing  at  the  ropes  of  the  artillery  on  the  Sunday  night 
previous;  they  could  perceive  that  by  their  exertions 
that  splendid  battery  of  twenty  pounder  brass  guns 
had  been  saved  to  resist  an  incoming  siege. 

Longstreet  now  began  to  approach  the  city  with 
great  caution,  his  long  lines  of  infantry  could  be  seen 
slowly  winding  their  way  west  of  the  outskirts  of 
the  old  works. 

As  soon  as  dark  set  in,  a  detail  was  made  of  fifty  - 
four  men  from  the  51st,  to  go  out  on  picket;  it  was 
hard  to  send  them,  but  the  necessity  of  the  case  de 
manded  it.  The  detailed  men  obeyed  promptly  with 
but  one  exceptional  case  of  grumbling,  and  that  was 
by  a  man  who  could  not  exist  without  grumbling,  for 
it  was  his  nature.  Reader,  if  you  have  never  been 
on  such  duty,  after  losing  as  much  sleep  as  those 
poor  men,  you  cannot  form  any  idea  of  the  agoniz 
ing  torture  it  is  to  be  sent  out  on  picket,  just  as  you 
had  fully  satisfied  yourself  that  you  were  about 
lying  down  to  enjoy  one  night's  quiet  sleep !  Im 
agine  as  you  may,  you  cannot  form  a  true  picture. 
They  had  been  four  days  and  three  nights,  and  this 
was  to  be  their  fourth  night,  with  less  than  four 
hours'  sleep.  Their  brains  in  a  whirl  of  excitement 


488     HISTORY   OF  THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

all  the  time  ;  their  mi  ads  racked  with  suspense  as  to 
the  result  of  the  battles;  their  physical  natures  com 
pletely  worn  down  with  the  laborious  duty  which 
kept  their  sinewy  frames  on  a  constant  strain  both 
day  and  night;  their  shoulders  aching  under  their 
canteen  and  haversack  straps ;  their  waists  and  hips, 
galled  by  their  waist  belts,  borne  down  with  their 
well  filled  cartridge  boxes ;  their  arms  aching  from 
the  constant  carrying  of  their  muskets ;  their  backs 
and  shoulders  in  agony  from  the  tightly  strapped 
knapsacks  ;  their  feet  blistered  from  heel  to  toe  ;  and 
in  short,  cold,  tired,  hungry  and  sick !  You  have 
now  their  true  condition,  but  do  not  think  the 
officers  fared  any  better,  they  did  not — officers  are 
but  men  with  the  same  feelings,  and  see  the  diffi 
culties  of  a  soldier's  life  with  the  same  eyes  that  an 
enlisted  man  does,  though  they  are  not  compelled  to 
become  pack  mules  as  the  private,  but  they  are  under 
greater  restraints,  undergo  heavier  responsibilities, 
and  have  duties  to  perform  attended  with  far  more 
danger. 

The  morning  of  the  18th  found  Burnside  pretty 
thoroughly  invested  by  his  antagonist ;  the  siege  had 
been  fully  inaugurated.  Our  pickets  had  made 
themselves  a  line  of  entrenchments,  just  outside  of 
the  thickly  settled  part  of  the  city,  within  three 
hundred  yards  of  their  main  line.  A  great  many 
houses  stood  between  our  pickets  and  the  main  line 
of  works,  and  the  rebels  made  a  number  of  sallies  at 
different  periods  during  the  siege  to  get  possession 
of  our  pits;  sometimes  they  were  successful,  at 
others  they  failed. 

Every  day,  from  the  commencement  of  the  siege 
until  it  was  raised,  added  strength  to  our  fortifi- 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  489 

cations ;  new  pits  were  dug ;  old  ones  enlarged ; 
earthworks  grew  like  magic  ;  beautifully  constructed 
forts  dotted  the  entire  line ;  some  built  entirely 
of  the  earth,  others  constructed  of  sand  bags, 
others  of  cotton  bales,  and  the  principal  streets 
were  barricaded  with  old  wagons,  carts  and  other 
lumber,  such  as  could  be  found  in  the  sheds 
and  stables  in  and  around  the  city.  Thus  after 
making  the  city  pretty  safe  against  assault,  Col. 
Hartranft  decided  to  make  his  part  of  the  line  (the 
extreme  right)  doubly  safe,  by  damming  up  a  creek 
on  the  right  of  it.  This  creek  was  known  by  the 
citizens  as  "  First  creek."  It  ran  at  right  angles  with 
Hartranft's  lines  and  emptied  into  the  llolston  river, 
in  the  rear  of  the  works.  A  street  extended  parallel 
with  the  line  of  pits  and  crossed  the  creek  over  a 
one  arch* stone  bridge.  To  dam  up  the  water  where 
it  entered  the  arch  would  be  a  task  of  vast  im 
portance;  though  laborious  to  perform,  Col.  Hart 
ranft  had  not  the  material  to  build  such  a  dam,  as 
might  make  it  strong  enough  to  resist  the  immense 
pressure  of  water  that  would  collect  there,  but  such 
as  he  had  he  used,  and  got  a  large  detail  of  men 
from  his  division  and  put  them  to  work  at  it.  As 
the  water  rose  in  the  dam,  it  became  evident  that 
the  material  was  not  staunch  enough  to  resist  the 
pressure ;  but  the  work  progressed  towards  com 
pletion  and  the  dam  filled  to  overflowing,  backed 
up  the  water  to  the  depot,  to  the  depth  of  three  to 
six  feet ;  but  it  was  no  sooner  completed  and  the 
men  still  looking  at  their  work,  than  the  whole  thing 
gave  way,  and  the  water  rushed  like  a  torrent,  sweep 
ing  everything  in  its  current  into  the  river  below. 

22 


490     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Col.  Hartranft  looked  at  the  frustration  of  his  hopes 
with  a  calmness  that  was  truly  heroic. 

As  soon  as  the  water  subsided  into  its  natural 
sized  channels,  he  had  another  detail  made  and  an 
other  dam  in  progress.  This  time  he  secured  a 
heavy  girder,  about  twenty-four  feet  long  and  four 
teen  by  fourteen  inches  square ;  this  was  let  down 
into  the  water  so  that  each  end  might  rest  against 
the  respective  sides  of  the  arch,  and  form  a  strong 
foundation  on  which  to  build  the  new  work ;  but 
after  reaching  the  water,  from  some  uncontrollable 
cause  the  girder  missed  catching  on  one  of  the  walls, 
and  swung  around  and  was  passing  through  the 
arch,  on  its  way  towards  the  river.  Xo  one  knew 
the  depth  of  the  water  in  the  creek,  and  none  cared 
to  jump  in  to  find  out;  but  as  the  foremost  end  had 
entered  the  archway,  Sergt.  Parker  leaped  into  the 
water  with  his  clothing  on,  and  reached  the  girder 
in  time  to  save  it  from  floating  off.  The  current  was 
deep  and  swift,  and  having  a  very  uncertain  footing, 
he  could  do  nothing  but  hold  the  timber  from  get 
ting  any  further  away.  At  least  two  hundred  men 
stood  looking  on,  but  none  would  venture  in  to  as 
sist  him.  Sergt.  John  W.  Fair,  of  Co.  C,  happened 
to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  operation,  and  in  an  in 
stant  he  was  aiding  Sergt.  Parker.  The  two  were 
at  times  so  deep  in  water  that  they  found  a  difficulty 
in  towing  the  heavy  stick  against  the  strong  current, 
until  they  got  it  far  enough  away  from  the  arch 
for  those  on  dry  land  to  assist  them,  after  which 
the  two  sergeants  floated  the  girder  into  its  proper 
place.  The  filling  in  with  planking  taken  off  of  the 
bridge  floor  now  commenced.  A  strong  breast  was 
thus  built  and  filled  in  with  about  one  thousand 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  491 

cart-loads  of  dirt.  This  time  the  work  was  a  com 
plete  success.  The  water  rose  and  backed  up  the 
creek  clear  to  the  rebel  lines.  All  the  low  ground 
on  the  right  of  the  city  was  flooded,  varying  from 
four  to  six  feet  deep,  making  an  insurmountable 
barrier  for  a  charging  foe  to  face.  This  flood  of 
water  made  that  part  of  the  line  secure,  also  the 
strongest. 

The  next  thing  in  order  was  to  burn  the  splendid 
mansions  on  the  outskirts  of  the  city,  so  as  to  pre 
vent  the  enemy  from  placing  sharpshooters  in  them 
to  pick  off'  our  gunners  in  the  fortifications. 

A  large  number  of  men  were  detailed  on  the  vol 
unteer  system  to  act  as  sharpshooters  and  house- 
burners.  They  were  all  taken  out  of  the  51st  P.  Y. 
A  specified  number  was  to  come  from  each  company. 
Each  man  was  fully  instructed  as  to  his  duties,  and 
of  his  peril,  if  caught  by  the  foe.  They  were  to  take 
up  their  quarters  in  the  houses — two  or  three  to  a 
house — to  remain  there  day  and  night,  to  have  a  pile 
of  combustible  material  in  each  room  they  occupied, 
and  on  the  first  approach  of  the  enemy  towards  the 
houses,  they  were  to  apply  the  match,  and  escape,  if 
they  possibly  could,  to  the  inner  works ;  but  under 
no  circumstances  were  they  to  leave  the  house  with 
out  firing  it.  To  these  instructions  they  readily 
acceded,  and  volunteered  to  fill  the  detail.  Nearly 
all  succeeded  in  firing  their  houses  and  escaping  the 
vengeance  of  their  enemies.  One  man  only,  Patter 
son,  of  Co.  K,  fell  into  their  hands.  He  had  fired 
his  house  and  left  it;  but  thinking  it  was  not  burn 
ing,  he  returned  to  apply  the  match  the  second  time  ; 
but  as  he  was  leaving  the  house  the  rebels  had  got 
too  close  on  him  and  shot  him  down,  but  not  killing 


492     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

him.  They  then  thrust  a  bayonet  through  his  head, 
putting  an  end  to  his  sufferings.  His  foe  or  foes 
stripped  him  of  his  shoes,  bjut  our  pickets  charging 
on  them  they  escaped  to  their  own  lines.  Patter 
son's  body  was  carried  in  to  Dr.  Reinhold's  quarters, 
and  his  wounds  were  examined  by  Dr.  K.,  who  pro 
nounced  him  killed  by  the  bayonet,  as  the  gunshot 
wound  was  not  of  itself  sufficient  to  produce  death. 

Some  nights  as  many  as  twenty-five  houses  would 
be  on  fire  at  one  time,  presenting  a  sublime  picture 
to  all  who  witnessed  it.  The  city,  the  picket-pits, 
and  the  whole  surrounding  country  would  be  lighted 
up  us  bright  as  midday.  It  was  a  sight  but  seldom 
seen  and  never  to  be  forgotten. 

The  duties  of  the  51st  -P.  Y.  during  the  siege  was 
of  an  extraordinary  character,  having  only  about 
one  hundred  and  four  men  fit  for  efficient  service. 
One-fourth  of  that  number  would  go  on  the  picket 
]ine  at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  there  to  remain 
twenty-four  hours.  At  six  o'clock  of  the  evening 
of  the  same  day  another  fourth  would  go  on  for 
twenty-four  hours.  Then  at  four  A.  M.  of  the  next 
day  the  first  pickets  would  be  relieved  by  the  third 
fourth,  and  that  same  night  the  second  fourth  would 
be  relieved  by  the  last  fourth,  and  so  on  during  the 
entire  siege. 

The  pickets,  as  relieved,  would  retire  to  their 
quarters  to  prepare  whatever  rations,  if  any,  they 
had  to  satisfy  their  hunger  to  but  a  limited  extent, 
and  to  enjoy,  as  they  imagined,  a  few  hours'  sleep ; 
but  in  this  they  were  invariably  disappointed,  for  a 
detail  from  headquarters  would  be  in  for  them  to  go 
on  "  fatigue  duty  "  as  soon  as  they  were  relieved 
from  picket.  The  fatigue  duty  was  to  those-  poor 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      493 

fellows  of  the  most  painful  kind — to  use  the  pick 
and  shovel,  perhaps,  for  the  next  twenty-four  hours, 
and  be  relieved  to  go  immediately  out  again  on 
picket,  three  times  out  of  four  without  a  morsel  of 
food  to  eat  or  to  take  with  them.  It  may  be  doubted 
by  many  that  such  usage  of  men  could  possibly  be, 
and  the  men  live;  but,  dear  reader,  this  is  no  over 
drawn  picture.  If  you  still  doubt  it,  ask  any  of  the 
participants  of  that  siege,  either  officers  or  privates, 
either  of  the  9th  or  23d  corps,  and  if  you  can  find 
one  who  will  say  the  picture  is  untrue  or  in  the  least 
overdrawn,  then  I  stand  convicted  before  the  public 
of  a  base,  wilful  lie,  for  falsehood  is  too  genteel  a 
term  to  be  tolerated. 

And  again,  those  same  men  were  not  only  forced 
to  do  duty  in  the  above  manner  from  the  necessity 
of  the  occasion  incident  to  a  siege,  but  they  were 
obliged  to  be  out  through  the  inclemency  of  the 
wintry  season  in  a  mountainous  section  of  the  coun 
try  in  an  almost  naked  condition.  Numbers  of  them 
were  without  the  comforts  of  a  blanket,  and  still 
larger  numbers  without  shirts,  drawers,  or  stock 
ings;  their  blouses  and  pantaloons  in  tatters;  the 
frosty  night  air  pinching  their  bare  skin,  without  a 
cup  of  warm  coffee  to  cheer  them  in  the  long,  dreary, 
sleety  night,  or  a  spark  of  fire  by  which  they  might  in 
differently  warm  their  benumbed  limbs;  their  fin 
gers  so  torpid  with  the  constant  handling  of  their 
cold  muskets,  that  it  was  painful  to  behold.  Thus 
were  they,  during  the  entire  siege,  worn  out  in  mind 
and  body  ;  suffering  from  the  chilling  wintry  blasts ; 
nearly  naked,  heartsore,  and  weary,  living  on  less 
than  one-fourth  rations,  and  that  of  an  inferior 
quality.  A  large  portion  of  their  bread  was  made 


494:     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

from  musty  black  bran,  and  of  a  pasty,  doughy  na 
ture.  Those  who  were  fortunate  enough  to  possess 
shirts  were  compelled  to  wear  them  until  nearly 
ready  to  fall  from  their  backs  with  filth  and  vermin, 
their  time  being  so  occupied  with  their  onerous 
duties,  that  leisure  to  wash  them  was  denied  the 
men. 

Lieutenant  Samuel  P.  Stephens,  quartermaster  of 
the  regiment,  was  indefatigable  in  his  exertions  to 
procure  the  men  all  and  every  necessary  that  he 
could  lay  his  hands  on,  but  large  as  his  noble  heart 
was,  his  means  to  furnish  supplies  were  of  too  lim 
ited  a  nature  for  him  to  do  much  to  alleviate  his 
suffering  men.  Visiting  the  works  several  times  a 
day,  he  was  besought  by  the  men  "for  God's  sake, 
Stevie,  get  us  something  to  eat."  "Poor  Stevie,"  as 
the  boys  all  called  him,  would  leave  and  call  around 
among  the  headquarters  of  the  different  commands, 
and  if  he  could  find  a  single  cracker  or  "  hard  tack," 
he  would  appropriate  it  for  whoever  he  thought  had 
the  most  need  of  it.  Eeturning  to  his  own  regi 
ment,  with  the  hard  tack  buttoned  up  in  the  breast 
of  his  coat,  to  prevent  it  from  being  seen,  he  would 
listen  to  the  tales  of  hunger,  and  bestow  his  scanty 
morsel  on  him  who  was  the  greatest  sufferer.  He 
would  gaze  on  their  shivering  forms  as  they  flitted 
past  him,  and,  singling  out  the  most  destitute,  would 
return  to  his  own  quarters  and  take  a  shirt,  drawers, 
or  pants,  and  come  back  to  make  some  one  the  re 
cipient  of  his  limited  but  generous  bounty,  until  he 
became  as  destitute  of  clothing  as  those  for  whom 
his  heart  ached.  Nothing  was  a  trouble  to  him.  He 
was  partial  to  none,  but  liberal  to  all,  not  from  any 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  495 

selfish  ambition,  but  from  the  purely  generous  im 
pulses  of  his  noble,  noble  heart. 

Major  Bolton,  too,  was  another  to  whom  too  much 
praise  cannot  be  given  for  his  kindness  towards  his 
command.  As  detail  upon  detail  would  pour  in  for 
his  men,  he  would  plead  with  the  officers  until  the 
number  would  be  reduced  to  the  smallest  amount 
possible.  Thus  some  one  would  receive  the  benefit 
of  an  hour  or  two  of  rest. 

But  of  all  the  abused  men  in  the  whole  army,  the 
adjutants  of  the  different  regiments  generally  fare  the 
worst,  whose  duties  are  similar  to  that  of  a  first  or  or 
derly  sergeant  of  a  company.  In  fact  the  adjutant  is 
the  orderly  sergeant  of  the  regiment.  It  falls  to  his  lot 
to  fill  all  details  from  headquarters,  by  detailing  an 
equal  number  of  men  pro  rata  from  each  company 
under  his  command.  On  this  occasion  1st  Lieuten 
ant  John  E.  Gillilan  of  Co.  G  was  acting  adjutant 
of  the  51st  P.  V.  Whenever  the  boys  would  see 
him  coming  out  of  his  tent  with  a  piece  of  white 
paper  in  his  hand,  they  were  fully  convinced  that 
another  detail  was  wanted.  Perhaps  the  men  had 
just  been  relieved  either  from  picket  or  fatigue  duty. 
They  would  gather,  around  their  first  sergeant  (if  it 
was  a  detail  asked  for)  to  know  if  they  would  have 
to  go  on  it.  By  the  time  they  would  be  answered 
in  the  affirmative,  the  adjutant's  voice  would  be 
heard  on  the  left  of  the  line  inquiring  for  Sergeants 
Parker  and  Long,  who  appeared  to  be  the  only  ser 
geants  that  the  lieutenant  expected  to  find  at  their 
posts.  Then  would  commence  a  parley  between  the 
sergeants  and  adjutant,  the  former  asserting  that 
they  had  no  men  to  detail,  they  were  all  either  on 
duty  or  just  going.  If  the  adjutant  saw  a  few 


4f6       HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

around  him,  the  sergeants  would  be  silent,  while 
the  men  would  all  declare  that  they  were  on  duty  of 
some  kind.  The  adjutant  would  then  ask  them 
what  they  were  doing  in  at  their  quarters.  Their 
old  stereotype  answer,  "  We've  just  come  in  to  see 
if  there  was  any  rations  to  get,"  was  of  no  use.  The 
adjutant  would  enforce  his  detail,  and  sergeants,  as 
well  as  privates,  would  have  to  go  to  make  up  the 
quota. 

The  enemy  was  desperate  in  his  efforts  to  break 
through  Burnside's  line.  Attempts  were  made, 
nightly,  with  no  other  success  than  breaking 
through  the  picket  line  and  capturing  a  few 
pickets. 

On  November  23d,  a  rumor  became  circulated 
through  our  troops  that  at  Loudon  there  were 
eleven  thousand  men  coming  to  reinforce  us,  which 
had  the  effect  to  raise  Burnside  stock  to  par,  and 
send  Libby  and  Andersonville  far  below  it.  The 
good  news  was  electrical.  Each  man  forgot  his 
troubles,  and  cheerfulness  pervaded  both  corps. 
But,  as  the  men  listened,  without  success,  to  hear 
distant  cannonading  in  the  rear  of  Longstreet,  and 
the  day  wore  on,  they  began  to  tkink  they  had  been 
"  sold."  Nevertheless,  many  believed  it,  and  thus 
it  served  as  an  encouragement  for  several  days. 

On  the  next  morning,  about  2  o'clock,  the  enemy 
made  a  desperate  charge  on  that  part  of  the  picket 
line  held  by  the  51st  P.  V.,  and  succeeded  in 
driving  in  our  pickets  to  the  main  line  in  the  city, 
the  enemy  occupying  the  pits  and  a  portion  of  the 
ground  between  those  two  lines. 

Orders  were  immediately  despatched  to  Lieut. 
Col.  Schall  to  forward  his  brigade  and  take  back 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      497 

the  pits  before  day  should  break.  This  was  no  easy 
task,  as  the  night  was  dark  as  Erebus,  not  even  a 
house  on  fire  to  lend  its  light,  and  the  enemy  were 
in  possession  in  strong  force.  However,  Col.  Schall 
advanced  his  brigade  to  the  rear  of  the  railroad 
depot  by  the  flank,  then  filing  left  among  the 
ruins  of  the  late  fires,  he  brought  them  quietly  to 
a  front  and  formed  line  of  battle.  Bat,  from  the 
nature  of  the  ground,  and  the  numberless  piles  of 
debris  of  the  fallen  buildings,  with  the  many  half- 
filled  cellars,  holes,  fallen  trunks  of  trees,  stumps, 
etc.,  it  was  a  very  difficult  task  to  make  a  charge  in 
the  darkness  of  the  night.  Col.  S.  gave  the  orders 
to  advance  ;  but  it  was  impossible  to  do  so  with  an 
unbroken  line.  Our  men  involuntarily  came  to  a 
halt.  They  began  to  be  impatient  and  restive. 
Daylight  was  near  at  hand,  and  soon  the  work  must 
either  be  done  or  the  attempt  abandoned.  Col.  S., 
in  an  undertone,  again  gave  orders  to  forward  — 
the  enemy  being  within  fifty  feet  of  his  line,  made 
it  necessary  to  be  as  quiet  as  possible  in  the  move 
ment  ;  but  only  a  few  in  the  vicinity  of  the  lieut. 
colonel  could  hear  the  order,  and  that  part  of  the  line 
advanced  a  few  paces,  and  came  to  a  halt.  Major 
W.  J.  Bolton  demanded  of  Col.  Schall  to  know  if 
it  was  his  object  to  take  the  pits.  Col.  S.  replied  it 
was.  Maj.  Bolton  asked  him  if  he  was  ready,  as  it 
was  getting  late.  He  was  answered  "  Yes."  Then, 
in  as  loud  a  voice  as  he  could  command,  which 
reached  to  the  right  and  left  of  the  whole  brigade, 
Major  Bolton  said,  "  Then  by  G — d  let  us  take 
them  !  Forward — double-quick — march  !"  and  the 
whole  line  charged  on  the  enemy  like  a  tornado, 
yelling  like  so  many  devils,  and  pouring  their 
22* 


498     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

volleys  of  musketry  into  the  fleeing  foe.  The  whole 
thing,  after  the  major  gave  the  command,  occupied 
about  thirty  seconds  and  the  work  was  completed. 

The  charge  thus  made  afforded  many  a  hearty 
laugh  at  the  expense  of  a  great  number  of  the  men, 
who  were  unfortunate  enough  to  tumble  into  the 
cellars  and  other  places  of  like  nature. 

As  the  men  rushed  pellmell  over  the  ruins,  it 
was  no  uncommon  thing  for  a  dozen  of  them  to  fall 
together  into  a  cellar,  or  some  place  of  like  charac 
ter — some  with  their  heads  up  and  others  with  their 
heels  up. 

The  enemy  were  terribly  frightened,  for  up  to 
the  time  that  Maj.  Bolton  gave  the  command,  they 
were  not  aware  of  their  close  proximity  to  the 
Yankees,  and  a  whole  brigade  yelling  as  they  did, 
made  the  enemy  think  the  entire  corps  was  coming 
at  them. 

The  firing  on  both  sides  was  pretty  brisk  until 
daybreak,  when  the  brigade  withdrew,  and  left  the 
pickets  once  more  in  possession  of  their  pits. 

The  next  day.  the  25th,  the  picket  line  was 
strongly  reinforced,  as  the  event  of  the  night  pre 
vious  had  proven  how  much  too  weak  it  was.  Five 
hundred  more  men  were  sent  out,  with  those  already 
there,  making  a  strong  enough  force  to  give  an  ob 
stinate  fight  if  attacked  again. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      499 


CHAPTER    XII. 

News  from  General  Sherman — Night  attack  on  the  left — Fort 
Sanders — The  network  of  wires— Desperate  charge  of  the 
rebels — The  struggle  on  the  parapet — Repulse  of  the  enemy 
— Disparity  of  losses — Raising  of  the  siege — Retreat  of  Long- 
street — Rutledge — Blain's  Cross-roads — Another  battle — Re- 
eulistrnent  commenced — Close  of  the  campaign  of  18G3, 

ON  the  26th,  things  had  quieted  down  all  along 
the  lines.  Very  few  shots  were  fired  from  either 
side.  Orders  were  issued  in  the  afternoon  to  be 
ready  to  move  at  a  moment's  notice.  "  What  is  up 
now  ?"  was  heard  on  all  sides.  Were  we  getting 
reinforced  ?  and  were  we  to  attack  the  enemy  and 
compel  him  to  raise  the  siege  ?  Some  of  the  more 
hopeful  thought  so  ;  others,  more  desponding, 
thought  Longstreet  about  to  attack  the  whole  line 
by  assault ;  but  nothing  definite  could  be  known. 

Shortly  after  daylight  of  the  27th,  an  order  was 
read  to  the  troops  that  Sherman,  with  twenty  thou 
sand  men,  was  coming  to  our  rescue.  At  the  con 
clusion  of  the  reading,  cheer  upon  cheer  reverber 
ated  through  the  air  and  penetrated  the  enemy's 
line.  The  good  news  made  all  forget  their  forlorn 
and  almost  hopeless  condition. 

On  the  28th  the  enemy  attacked  the  extreme  left 
of  our  line,  shortly  after  midnight,  with  desperation, 
driving  in  our  pickets  and  feeling  the  strength  of 
the  main  line.  The  enemy  had  received  secret  infor 
mation  that  that  part  of  the  line  was  the  weakest, 
which  it  was,  hence  hard  fighting  occurred  through 
out  the  day  and  night.  That  night  about  11  o'clock 


500     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

the  enemy  massed  two  full  brigades  under  the  com 
mand  of  Gen.  Garcie.  As  they  now  held  that  part 
of  our  picket  line,  the  two  brigades  were  within 
six  hundred  yards  of  our  main  line.  After  man- 
oauvring  around  for  a  great  length  of  time,  the 
enemy  made  a  charge  on  Fort  Sanders,*  which  oc 
cupied  a  point  a  little  to  the  right  of  centre.  Gen. 
Ed.  L.  Ferrero  commanding  that  portion  of  the  line 
had  taken  the  precaution  to  make  such  an  attempt 
on  the  part  of  the  foe  a  failure.  He  had  taken 
down  all  the  telegraph  wires  in  and  around  the  city, 
and  secured  them  to  stationary  objects  for  a  num 
ber  of  yards  in  his  front,  placing  the  wires  about 
a  foot  above  the  ground  and  far  enough  apart  to 
allow  a  person  to  walk  between  them,  providing 
they  could  see  them.  In  the  darkness  the  enemy 
made  his  charge.  They  rushed  like  demons,  yelling 
defiance  at  the  volleys  of  musketry  that  were  poured 
into  them  until  they  reached  the  wire  abattis,  when 
they  went  to  the  ground  in  dire  confusion  by  being 
tripped.  Lieut.  Benjamin  now  handled  his  20- 
pounder  pets  with  a  will,  pouring  canister  shot 
into  their  confused  masses  while  in  their  heaped  up 
condition.  The  struggle  was  fearful,  the  excitement 
was  great  along  the  whole  line.  Would  the  enemy 
be  successful !  if  so,  Knoxville  must  fall  and  a  sur 
render  would  be  inevitable. 

The  enemy  in  his  desperation  came  on,  his  ranks 
fearfully  depleted  ;  he  gains  the  parapet  of  the  fort ; 
a  hand  to  hand  fight  ensues,  some  are  in  the  fort 
demanding  the  surrender  of  it  with  their  hands  on 

*  Named  by  Genl.  Burnside  in  honor  of  Brig.  Genl.  Sanders, 
who  was  mortally  wounded  near  this  point  while  gallantly 
rallying  his  brigade,  a  few  days  prior  to  the  final  assault. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      501 

the  guns,  with  such  exclamation  as  "  Surrender, 
you  Yankee  s — s  of  b — s;"  but  they  had  "reckoned 
without  their  host."  Many  of  them  were  laid  low 
by  the  blows  from  muskets,  axe-handles,  clubs, 
stones,  swabs  and  rammers,  or  anything  else  the 
"  Yanks"  could  seize  most  conveniently. 

The  enemy  finally  beat  a  retreat,  or  at  least  as 
many  of  them  as  could  get  away.  They  had  lost 
heavily  at  the  tripping  up  at  the  wires  in  killed  and 
wounded,  and  also  heavily  at  the  fort  in  killed, 
wounded  and  prisoners.  Ferrero's  loss  was  com 
paratively  light,  not  amounting  to  more  than  30 
killed  and  wounded,  while  that  of  the  enemy  was 
known  to  be  over  500  killed,  600  wounded,  and  315 
prisoners,  total  1,415. 

The  following  account  of  the  charge  on  Fort  San 
ders,  is  taken  from  the  "  Philadelphia  Inquirer." 

ARMY  OF  THE  Oino. — A  delayed  despatch  from  Knoxville, 
dated  on  Monday,  tells  of  an  abortive  assault  of  the  rebels 
upon  Gen.  Burnside's  picket  line  and  first  lines  of  defences. 
The  rebels  were  repulsed  with  great  slaughter,  leaving  their 
dead  and  wounded  in  our  hands,  with  a  number  of  prisoners. 
This  was  a  decided  check  to  Gen.  Lougstreet,  and  probably 
had  something  to  do  with  his  retreat  subsequently. 


KNOXVILLE,  TENN.,  Nov,  29 — j 
The  thirteenth  day  of  the  siege  of  Knoxville  has  been  marked 
by  the  most  important  engagement  since  the  enemy  first  in 
vested  the  city.  The  attack  so  long  expected,  a  fight  which, 
in  the  comparison  of  loss  on  either  side,  finds  a  parallel  only 
in  Gen.  Jackson's  battle  of  New  Orleans. 

The  rebels  charged  across  the  open  space  which  intervened 
between  the  timber  and  fort,  and  which  was  crossed  witli  logs 
and  the  stumps  of  felled  trees,  and  came  on  at  impetuous  speed. 
The  first  check  was  given  when  the  foremost  of  the  column 
stumbled  over  a  line  of  the  telegraph  wire,  which  had  been 
stretched  through  the  low  brush  and  coiled  from  stump  to 
stump  out  of  ordinary  view.  As  they  halted  here  momentarily, 
one  falling  over  another,  until  the  cause  of  the  obstruction  was 
discovered,  our  batteries  in  the  fort  had  full  play. 

The  ambulances  from  both  sides  now  met  on  the  neutral 
ground,  and  the  dead  were  carried  back  to  the  rebel  line,  where 


502      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

they  were  buried  by  their  late  comrades.  The  officers  com 
mingled,  from  generals  down  to  lieutenants,  and  so  also  did 
the  soldiers,  until  their  officers  ordered  them  back  to  their 
places.  Nearly  a  hundred  of  the  rebel  wounded  had  been 
carried  into  the  city  and  cared  for  at  the  hospital  of  the  9th 
Corps. 

The  rebel  wounded  state  that  Gen.  Longstreet  issued  an 
address  to  the  troops  last  night,  boasting  that  they  would  all 
take  dinner  in  Knoxville  to-day.  Their  repulse,  when  it  was 
so  unlocked  for,  is  therefore  all  the  more  disastrous  and  de 
moralizing.  The  veteran  79th  Highlanders  held  the  post  of 
honor  and  danger  here  as  they  have  on  many  another  occasion, 
and  were  supported  by  their  not  less  valorous  comrades  of  the 
old  3d  Mich.,  29th  Mass.,  and  100th  Penn.  "roundheads." 

Our  men,  screened  by  the  parapet  of  the  fort  and  the  edges 
of  the  rifle-pits,  lost  less  than  twenty  in  killed  and  wounded. 
I  have  not  the  exact  list  as  yet,  but  it  embraces  about  four 
killed  and  fourteen  wounded.  This  disparity  finds  a  parallel, 
as  I  have  observed  in  the  commencement  of  this  letter,  only  in 
the  battle  of  New  Orleans. 

Among  the  individual  acts  of  gallantry  was  that  of  Sergeant 
Judge,  of  Company  K,  79th  Highlanders,  who,  when  the  bat 
tle-flag  of  a  Georgia  regiment  was  raised  upon  the.  parapet, 
rushed  out  amid  the  bullets,  and,  tearing  it  down,  carried  it  in 
through  the  embrasures,  a  prize  to  his  comrades. 

While  the  main  battle  was  in  progress  at  Fort  Sanders,  our 
line,  further  to  the  right,  under  Colonels  Hartranft,  Sieg 
fried,  and  Schall,  successfully  charged  and  drove  the  rebels 
from  the  position  which  they  captured  from  us  last  night ;  and 
before  the  battle  terminated  our  skirmishers  at  this  point  had 
resumed  their  old  places. 

KILLED   AND   WOUNDED   PENNSYLVANIA]^. 

100th  Pennsylvania. — Killed,  Aaron  Templeton,  Co.  A,  mi- 
nie  ball  through  head  ;  J.  R.  W.  Garrittson,  A,  minie  ball 
through  head.  Wounded,  Chas.  McConnell,  Co.  E,  minie 
ball  passing  through  right  ilium  ;  First  Sergeant  Joe  Kennedy, 
minie  ball,  entering  back  of  neck  and  passing  out  of  mouth ; 
Underwood,  A,  minie  ball,  slightly,  in  right  side  of  neck. 

50th  Pennsylvania. — Wounded,  Samuel  Hese,  Sergeant  Co. 
F,  slightly,  scalp. 

51st  Pennsylvania. — Killed,  William  Patterson,  Co.  K,  Nov. 
24 ;  Wm.  Doudy,  H,  Nov.  29.  Wounded,  13.  J.  Reilly,  Co.  13, 
left  thigh. 

48th  Pennsylvania. — Killed,  Corp.  John  Spooner,  Co.  H. 
Wounded,  Second  Lieut.  Henry  Jackson,  Co.  G,  left  thigh  ; 
James  Heiser,  Co.  I,  right  ear. 

The  51st,  we  learn,  have  inscribed  upon  their  flags  all  the 
battles  in  which  they  have  participated.  This  has  been  done 
in  accordance  with  orders  from  Gen.  Burnside,  and  we  think 
the  order  a  very  good  one,  as  it  distinguishes  the  veterans  from 
the  newly  enlisted  troops.  Look  upon  the  list  of  battle  names 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      503 

inscribed  upon  their  flags,  and  then  say  whether  or  not  they 
are  deserving  of  the  praise  which  has  been  so  freely  lavished 
upon  them  by  our  citizens.  Read: — ROANOKE,  NEWBERN, 
CAMDEN,  BULL  RUN,  CHANTILLY,  SOUTH  MOUNTAIN,  ANTIE- 
TAM,  SULPHUR  SPRINGS,  FREDERICKSBURG,  VICKSBURG.  JACK 
SON,  LOUDON,  CAMPBELL'S  STATION,  KNOXVILLE. 
This  is  a  noble  record  the  51st  have  made  for  themselves. 

At  noon  of  the  same  day  Gen.  Burnside  sent  Gen. 
Longstreet  a  flag  of  truce  to  come  and  bury  his 
dead,  which  was  gratefully  accepted  by  that  heroic 
officer. 

While  the  "truce"  was  good  the  boys  of  the  51st 
P.  V.  met  their  enemies  between  the  two  lines  on 
the  most  friendly  terms,  and  dealings  sprung  up  of 
an  innocent  nature  between  the  two  parties,  trading 
of  knives,  combs,  buttons,  tobacco,  &c.,  was  strongly 
indulged  in,  to  obtain  mementoes  of  the  occasion. 

On  the  30th,  every  man  of  the  51st  P.  V.,  whether 
officer  or  private,  who  was  not  on  other  duty,  was 
engaged  in  building  a  fort,  with  sand-bags  and  cot 
ton-bales,  at  the  top  of  the  hill,  across  the  street  lead 
ing  from  the  railroad  depot,  and  in  barricading  the 
same  street  from  the  depot  up  to  the  fort  with  wagons, 
carriages  and  carts,  for  the  attack  on  Fort  Sanders 
showed  that  the  enemy  was  still  anxious  to  capture 
the  town.  It  was  completed  on  the  1st  December. 
On  the  2d  December,  the  15th  Indiana  battery,  that 
was  stationed  in  the  fort,  directly  in  the  rear  of  that 
part  of  the  main  line  occupied  by  the  51st  P.  V.,  was 
removed  to  the  new  fort  just  completed,  leaving  the 
51st  P.  V.  without  the  cover  of  a  gun.  The  men 
now  saw,  more  than  ever,  the  utility  of  the  protec 
tion  afforded  by  the  darn  built  by  Col.  liar tranft ; 
their  part  of  the  main  line  was  safe  from  a  charge  in 
their  front,  at  least. 

Things  now  began  to  wear  a  more  cheerful  aspect 


504     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

along  the  whole  line;  the  enemy  was,  no  doubt, 
making  preparations  to  raise  the  siege  by  leaving ; 
the  firing  was  less  frequent.  On  the  4th  December, 
but  one  shot  was  fired  by  their  battery  the  whole 
day  ;  and  on  Saturday,  December  5th,  (the  nineteenth 
and  last  day  of  the  siege,)  at  4  A.  M.,  Longstreet  left 
the  investment  of  the  city  to  seek  safety  from  the 
vengeance  of  Gen.  Sherman's  army,  who  had  come 
to  our  rescue.  Daylight  convinced  us  that  we  were 
once  more  free  of  the  coils  of  the  foe.* 

As  soon  as  it  was  known  that  Longstreet  had  left, 
the  51st  was  ordered  to  follow  him  up,  and  secure 
whatever  prisoners  might  be  found  playing  the  lag-. 
gard.  A  large  number  of  his  pickets  had  been  left 
on  their  posts,  and  were  captured. 

On  Sunday,  the  6th  December,  the  paymaster,  who 
had  been  in  Knoxville  during  the  whole  siege,  and 
unknown  to  any  one  except  a  few  of  the  higher 
grade  of  officers,  gave  notice  to  Maj.  Bolton  that  he 
would  now  proceed  to  pay  his  regiment,  which  was 
accordingly  done,  filling  the  men  with  unbounded 
joy.  They  were  now  free  from  the  enemy,  and  with 
their  pockets  full  of  money ;  but  the  trouble  was, 
how  were  they  to  get  it  home,  or  what  could  they 
buy  with  it  ?  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  relieved  them  of  the 
former,  by  notifying  them  that  he  was  going  home 

*  Casualties  at  Knoxville  : 

Co.  A. — Wounded,  Corp.  Daniel  Lare ;  Corp.  Charles  M. 
Henniss,  captured. 

Co.  C. — Wounded,  Private  Michael  Dillon. 

Co.  G. — Wounded,  Private  Robert  Hinton. 

Co.  II.— Killed,  Private  William  Dougherty.  Captured, 
Private  David  Clarke. 

Co.  K. — Killed,  Private  Edward  H,  Patterson.  Wounded, 
Private  George  Bass. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      505 

in  a  few  days,  and  any  that  wanted  to  send  their 
money  home  could  do  so  by  him — a  risky,  thankless 
job.  His  kind  offer  was  eagerly  accepted. 

On  the  7th,  before  sunrise,  orders  were  issued  to 
the  51st  to  pack  up  and  to  be  ready  to  march  at  7  J 
o'clock,  to  leave  tents  stand,  and  with  three  days'  ra 
tions  in  their  haversacks!  Where  were  they  to  get 
one  day's,  let  alone  three  ?  At  the  hour  designated, 
the  regiment  moved  off  towards  Butledge,  making 
about  twelve  miles  that  day,  many  of  them  without 
tasting  a  morsel  of  food  until  they  halted  for  the 
night,  when  Lieut.  Stephens  issued  a  pint  of  corn- 
rneal  to  each  man. 

The  regiment  left  again  the  next  day  a  little  before 
noon,  and  made  about  seven  miles  more  towards 
Rutledge,  where  they  halted  near  a  creek  for  the 
night.  Next  morning,  at  7J  o'clock  of  the  9th,  it 
left  again  and  marched  about  seven  and  a-half  or 
eight  miles,  bringing  them  within  a  mile  and  a-half 
of  the  town,  then  visible ;  but  there  it  had  to  corne 
to  a  permanent  halt,  as  Gen.  Longstreet  had  his 
head-quarters  there,  and  did  not  care  to  be  intruded 
upon  by  the  Yankees. 

The  weather  being  inclement,  and  they  having  no 
thing  with  them  to  make  shelter,  they  pulled  down 
the  fences,  and  made  temporary  quarters  with  rails, 
and  cedar  and  pine  boughs,  which  broke  off  the 
severest  of  the  storms.  Here  the  51st  P.  V.  remained 
for  six  days  at  perfect  rest,  except  the  foraging  done 
by  individuals  on  their  own  private  account,  which 
was  pretty  well  followed  up,  especially  by  Companies 
B,  E,  G,  H  and  K,  whose  men  seemed  to  be  more 
fortunate  in  hunting  food  than  some  of  the  others. 

Lieut.  Col.  Schall  left  for  home  while  the  regiment 


506     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

was  here,  having  in  his  possession  several  thousand 
dollars  to  pay  to  the  families  of  the  men  of  the  51st, 
when  he  should  arrive  there. 

As  soon  as  the  regiment  came  to  a  halt,  on  the 
9th,  a  small  detail  of  pickets  was  sent  out,  and  the 
line  kept  up  during  our  stay  there  ;  but  on  the  morn 
ing  of  the  loth  our  quiet  was  disturbed  by  being 
suddenly  ordered  to  "  fall  in  "  and  form  a  line  of  bat 
tle,  as  the  pickets  were  being  driven  in  at  a  rapid 
rate;  but  after  standing  in  line  for  a  long  time,  the 
regiment  was  moved  to  a  gorge  in  the  Clinch  Moun 
tains,  a  short  distance  on  our  left.  The  enemy  not 
advancing  any  further  at  the  time,  two  days'  rations 
of  fresh  beef  and  one  of  flour  were  issued  to  each 
man  ;  but  the  men  had  scarcely  got  their  flour  wet, 
and  their  meat  on  the  fire,  which  some  were  frying 
on  the  half  of  a  canteen  or  a  tin  plate,  or  stewing  it 
in  their  tin  cups,  when  it  was  found  that  the  enemy 
was  close  on  to  us,  and  we  left  in  quite  a  hurry. 
Some  threw  away  their  rations ;  others  left  them  on 
the  fire ;  and  others  crammed  theirs,  stews  and  all, 
into  their  haversacks,  and  fell  in  for  a  hasty  retreat. 

The  regiment  marched  back  towards  Blain's  Cross 
roads  that  night  until  3  o'clock  A.  M.,  (the  16th,)  and 
camped  in  a  cornfield,  that  was  more  like  a  bed  of 
mortar  than  if  composed  of  earth. 

At  9  o'clock  A.  M.  of  the  16th,  the  regiment  again 
fell  back  about  three  miles,  and  made  a  stand  against 
the  enemy.  A  rude  breastwork  was  hastily  con 
structed  on  the  left  of  the  road  by  tearing  down 
fences,  by  order  of  Maj.  Bolton,  and  we  lay  on  our 
arms  that  night  in  a  drenching  rain. 

The  next  morning  early  the  regiment  was  in  line 
of  battle,  Col.  Hartranft  commanding  the  division. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      507 

About  10  A.  M.,  Wolford's  celebrated  Kentucky 
cavalry  was  driven  in,  as  also  was  Geri.  Saml.  Stur- 
gis's  cavalry.  The  51st  was  then  thrown  forward  as 
skirmishers,  and  considerable  skirmishing  ensued 
throughout  the  day.  It  held  its  ground  with  much 
stubbornness;  but  night  closing  in,  brought  with  it 
quietness.  One  man  of  Co.  K.,  Geo.  Meis,  was 
wounded.  Next  morning,  Lieut.  Wm.  E.  Foster,  Co. 
E,  who  was  in  command  of  the  skirmishers,  advanced 
his  men  about  three  miles  further  without  much  se 
rious  opposition.  Longstreet  having  fallen  back,  as 
the  following  despatch  of  December  19th  asserts: 

"LOKGSTK?:ET  lias  returned  to  Bull  Gap,  for  the  supposed 
purpose  of  wintering  in  Watuga  valley,  or  with  the  view  of 
moving  into  North  Carolina.  The  railroad  is  in  operation 
south  of  Knoxville  to  London,  and  the  river  is  open  to  naviga 
tion  from  Louclon  to  Chattanooga.  Gen.  Foster  has  established 
his  headquarters  at  Knoxville." 

While  the  skirmish  was  at  its  height,  Lieut.  J.  P. 
Brooke  arrived  from  home,  amid  the  congratulations 
of  his  host  of  friends,  and  immediately  buckled  on 
his  sword-belt,  and  entered  into  the  work  with  a 
will. 

The  enemy  had  withdrawn  out  of  harm's  way,  and 
we  again  settled  down  to  quietness.  On  Saturday, 
the  19th,  it  was  found  necessary  to  post  outside  pick 
ets,,  or  videttes,  consequently  five  companies — D,  E, 
Gr,  II  and  I — were  sent  over  among  the  mountains 
towards  Indian  Eidge,  which  was  about  two  miles 
and  a-half  to  the  right  of  the  road  leading  to  Eut- 
ledge.  They  staid  two  days,  capturing  a  few  rebels, 
when  Co.  I,  under  Sergt.  Parker,  was  sent  out  about 
two  and  a-half  miles  further  to  the  left  to  take  up  a 
position  at  White's  Cross-roads  where  they  diverged, 
one  towards  Buffalo  Creek  and  one  towards  Chan- 


508     HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

frau's  Bridge;  the  other  went  over  the  Indian 
Ridge,  where  a  couple  of  brigades  of  Alabama  cav 
alry  were  known  to  be  in  camp,  under  the  command 
of  a  Gen.  Martin. 

On  Monday,  the  21st,  Capt.  Gaulin,  of  Co.  G.,  who 
was  in  command  of  the  entire  picket  line,  brought 
his  whole  command  out  to  where  Co.  I  had  been 
posted  the  day  previous ;  but  before  night  set  in  he 
was  relieved  by  the  35th  Mass.  On  returning  to 
camp  the  pickets  were  made  happy  by  Maj.  Bolton 
having  all  their  tents,  knapsacks,  &c.,  brought  out 
from  Knoxville.  The  regiment  went  regularly  into 
camp,  where  it  remained  to  the  close  of  its  first  en 
listment,  doing  no  duty  but  picketing,  which  many 
of  them  had  to  do  barefooted  or  nearly  so.  The 
frosty  ground  would  lacerate  their  feet ;  yet  there 
was  no  alternative  but  to  comply.  The  men  while 
here  were  receiving  a  small  ear  of  corn  per  day  for 
a  ration,  which  had  to  be  shelled  and  ground,  or 
rather  mashed  up,  in  an  old,  rickety  coffee  mill ; 
receiving  the  ear  of  corn  generally  about  9  o'clock 
at  'night,  when  the  mill  for  grinding  it  would  be  in 
constant  use  till  daylight,  before  the  last  man  would 
have  his  corn  ground,  as  there  was  only  one  mill  to 
a  company,  and  it  worn  out  and  useless  to  a  great 
extent. 

It  was  now  drawing  on  close  to  the  last  of  the 
month,  as  well  as  the  last  of  the  year.  The  Gov 
ernment  had  made  a  liberal  offer  to  all  who  would 
re-enlist  for  another  three  years.  The  last  of  the 
month  was  muster  day,  and  up  to  that  time  very 
little  was  said  in  favor  of  the  new  enlistment.  At 
last,  the  81st  of  December,  1863,  arrived  ;  the  regi 
ment  was  mustered  for  two  months'  pay ;  still  nothing 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  509 

said  about  re-enlisting.  Towards  sundown  a  dress 
parade  was  formed,  and  as  it  was  about  being  dis 
missed,  Col.  Hartranft  appeared  at  the  side  of  Maj. 
Bolton,  who  was  in  front  and  centre  of  his  regiment. 
Col.  II.,  through  the  courtesy  of  the  Major,  addressed 
his  old  regiment  in  a  short  but  patriotic  speech, 
urging  it  to  re-enlist.  The  speech  had  the  effect  to 
make  the  men  think  seriously  about  their  own 
selfish  desires  and  of  the  more  ennobling  duty  to 
their  country.  The  parade  was  dismissed  at  the 
close  of  the  speech,  and  the  companies  marched  in 
silence  to  their  quarters,  to  ponder  over  what  had 
been  said  and  promised  by  Col.  Hartranft. 


CASUALTIES    AT    BLAIN'S    CROSS-ROADS.  —  Co.    B. —  Cap 
tured — Privates  Geo.  Crawford,  Court-land  Dutt. 
Co.  F. — Captured— Private  Wm.  Mclutyre. 
Co.  G. — Wounded — Geo.  Meiss. 
Co.  I. — Captured — Henry  Derr. 


510     HISTORY   OF   THE    FJFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 


PAET    IY.-18G4. 


CHAPTER  I. 

First  muster  of  veterans — The  veteran  roll  of  honor — A  thirty 
days'  furlough — Green-hide  moccasins — Starting  for  home — 
The  march  northward — Arrival  at  Camp  Nelson,  Ky. — New 
clothing — Cincinnati — Preparations  at  home  for  reception 
and  welcome — Proclamation  of  Gov.  Curtin — Arrival  at 
Harrislmrg — The  welcome  home — Affecting  scenes. 

JANUARY  1st,  1864;  was  a  busy,  exciting  day 
from  the  fact  that  a  few  had  decided  to  re-enlist. 
Lieut.  Wm.  K.  Foster  was  detailed  to  recruit  for 
veterans.  Private  John  Siebert,  of  Co.  B,  was  the 
first  man  to  put  his  name  down,  and  it  remained  on 
the  roll  solitary  and  alone  for  several  hours;  finally 
the  veterans  slowly  began  to  enrol  themselves.  The 
men  were  not  satisfied  to  re-enlist  under  some  of 
their  present  officers.  A  visit  to  Col.  Hartranft's 
quarters  was  necessary  to  extort  promises  from  him 
that  such  a  sergeant  should  be  commissioned  captain, 
or  1st  lieutenant,  or  2d  lieutenant,  and  that  their  old 
officers  should  be  discharged  as  soon  as  their  term 
expired.  If  all  of  this  should  be  done  then  they 
would  re-enlist,  but  not  without.  Col.  II.  made  some 
very  fair  promises,  and  that  alone  was  the  induce 
ment  of  many  re-enlistments.  Those  promises  he 
intended  to  carry  out  in  good  faith,  but  Grov.  Curtin 
stood  greatly  in  the  way  of  the.  fulfilling  them;  it 
was  he  that  did  the  commissioning  and  not  Col  II. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      511 

Although  Col.  H.  tried  his  influence  on  the  Governor, 
to  have  his  promises  made  good,  the  Governor  was 
inflexible,  and  the  old  officers  still  retained  their 
commissions,  to  be  mustered  out  when  the  war 
should  be  over. 

On  the  2d  of  January  what  few  had  re-enlisted 
were  marched  down  to  the  headquarters  of  Lieut. 
Bartlett,  an  officer  belonging  to  the  U.  S.  regulars, 
and  acting  as  Commissary  of  Musters,  who  mustered 
them  in  for  three  years  longer. 

Disputes  now  arose  among  the  men  as  to  who 
should  be  captain  or  who  should  be  a  lieutenant, 
and  no  more  would  re-enlist  until  that  point  was 
settled,  causing  another  visit  to  Col.  Hartranft,  who 
again  promised  to  accede  to  their  wishes.  Then  a 
few  more  enlistments  would  follow,  and  in  this  man 
ner  proceeded  the  whole  work  of  re-enlisting,  which 
was  not  completed  until  the  5th  of  January,  which 
was  the  last  day  that  re-enlistments  would  be 
received.  Up  to  the  last  hour  there  had  been  re- 
mustered  in  one  hundred  and  eighty  veterans,  leav 
ing  about  seventy-five  men  who  were  away  on  other 
service,  such  as  special  or  extra  duty  and  a  few  who 
could  not  be  induced  to  a  second  enlistment.  The 
following  is  the  muster-in  rolls  of  the  veteran  organi 
zation  : 

Co.  A. — Capt.  Jos.  K.  Bolton  ;  1st  Lieut.  Abraham  Ortlip; 
2d  Lieut.  John  S.  Moore;  1st  Sergt.  John  H.  Collision;  2d 
Sergt  Benj.  R.  Thompson;  3d  Sergt.  Jacob  H.  Mover;  4th 
Sergt.  Osman  Ortlip  ;  5th  Sergt,  Ed.  L.  Evans  ;  1st  Corp.  Frank 
H.  Mills  ;  2d  Corp.  Geo.  Ubele  ;  3d  Corp.  Charles  M.  Henniss; 
4th  Corp.  Levi  Bolton  ;  5th  Corp.  Jesse  Herbster  ;  Musician, 
John  W.  Shillich;  Wagoner,  Win.  Hoffman  ;  Privates,  George 
Bodey,  William  Barr,  George  S.  Buzzard,  Henry  Dickinson, 
Isaac  E.  Filmari,  Charles  Hansell,  James  O'Neil,  Jacob  Oster, 
Washington  Smith.  Remustercd  into  service  as  Veteran  Vol 
unteers,  under  General  Orders  No.  191,  War  Dept.  series  of 
1-803,  by  N.  C.  Bartlett,  Lieut,  3d  U.  S.  Artillery,  Com.  Mus. 
9th  Army  Corps. 


512     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Co.  B.— Capt.  Daniel  L.  Nicholas  ;  1st  Lieut.  John  H.  Gen- 
ther  ;  2d  Lieut.  Robert  M.  Burrell ;  Valentine  Stocker,  John 
W.  Meeker,  Samuel  A.  Apple,  John  W.  Beam,  Alson  Stocker, 
Conrad  Svvazer,  Charles  8.  Kuauss,  John  M.  Wein,  Philip  A. 
Barndt,  George  Johnson,  Milton  Ackerman,  Enos  Schoch, 
Samuel  F.  Knapp,  Henry  Schooly,  Matthew  Delaney,  Edward 
Bullman,  George  W.  Moser,  Josiali  Ackerman,  Harrison  Ack 
erman,  Adam  Buzzard,  John  W.  Brunner,  William  Colbrath, 
Edward  Hill,  Thomas  P.  Miller,  Christian  B.  Myers,  John 
Obeholzer,  John  Seibert,  Charles  Shark,  Thomas  Unangst, 
Daniel  W.  Vannatta,  Nicholas  Wooring,  Cyrus  AVerkeiser, 
Lewis  H.  Young. 

Co.  C.— -  Capt.  William  Allebaugh  ;  1st  Lieut.  Thomas  J. 
Lynch ;  3d  Lieut.  William  F.  Thomas ;  1st  Sergt.  George  H. 
Smith ;  2d  Sergt.  John  W.  Fair  ;  3d  Sergt.  Nathan  H.  Ram 
sey  ;  4th  Sergt.  Benjamin  F.  Miller  ;  5th  Sergt.  Montgomery 
Smith  ;  1st  Corp.  Peter  Undercofler  ;  3d  Corp.  William  R. 
Gilbert ;  3d  Corp.  Levi  W.  Shingle  ;  4th  Corp.  Patrick  Kevin  ; 
5th  Corp.  William  Robinson  ;  6th  Corp.  John  C.  Umstead  ; 
7th  Corp.  Henry  H.  Lightcap  ;  8th  Corp.  A.  J.  Reed  ;  Hugh 
Lynch,  Benjamin  R.  Sill,  Hugh  McLain,  William  Bean,  An 
drew  J.  Grim,  Wm.  Kooker,  .Joseph  Cornog,  Michael  Dillon, 
Samuel  Dean,  H.  D.  Espenship,  James  W.  Elliott,  David  Es- 
penship,  Jacob  Fizone,  Charles  R.  Fox,  George  McGinley, 
Andrew  J.  CTNeil,  George  Pickup,  Jacob  B.  Rinker,  James 
Sullivan,  George  Stout,  Henry  Undercofler,  A.  Walt,  H.  P. 
Wood,  Mark  L.  Yerger,  Willam  H.  R.  Fox,  William  Gunn, 
Frank  Grubb,  Ellwood  Hamilton,  Frank  Hendrick,  Henry 
Jago,  Benjamin  Johnson,  Jacob  Keely,  Benjamin  Kooker, 
George  W.  Lightcap 

Co.  D. — Capt.  Lewis  Hollman  ;  1st  Lieut.  (vacancy)  ; 

3d  Lieut.  Jonathan  Swallow  ;  1st  Sergt.  Isaac  Fizone ;  2d 
Sergt.  David  Long  ;  John  Powell,  Henry  Foreman,  William 
Dignan,  William  D.  Jenkins,  John  McNulty,  John  R.  Gray, 
John  L.  McCoy,  Andrew  Fnir,  John  Dunn,  Albert  List,  Wm. 
W.  Smith,  Isaac  Tolan,  Albert  Wood,  Joseph  Anderson, 
Noble  Creighton,  William  Essick,  John  R.  Fleck,  Alfred  R. 
Gray,  John  Johnson,  Elwood  Lukens,  Charles  Lysinger,  Sam 
uel  McDade,  Dennis  O'Neil,  Barney  O'Domiell,  Thomas  D. 
Smith,  W.  P.  Schall,  Hiram  Vanfossen. 

Co.  E. — Capt.  George  II.  Hassenplug  ;  1st  Lieut.  William  R. 
Foster  ;  3d  Lieut.  Martin  L.  Schoch  ;  Francis  R.  Frey,  Jas.  L. 
Seebold,  Geo.  C.  Gutelius,  Jno.  M.  Wierman,  Thos/D.  Reed, 
E.  G.  Maize,  Chas.  Mills,  C.  Edelman,  Geo.  Diehl,  Jno.  H. 
Sortman,  Cyrus  A.  Eaton,  Frank  S.  Sliaffle,  Jno.  W.  Sheckler, 
Peter  Strubble,  D.  High,  E.  Sprowles,  Levi  H.  Ammons,  Thos. 
S.  Alauck,  Geo.  M.  Aurand,  Geo.  H.  Beers,  Jas.  P.  Cornelius, 
Thos.  II.  Claphan,  Isaac  Dolby,  Jas.  M.  Dunkle,  Jacob  Miller, 
S.  M.  Gregor,  S.  Searless. 

Co.  F.— Capt.  Lane  S.  Hart ;  1st  Lieut.  Jacob  P.  Brooke; 
3d  Lieut.  Wm.  W.  Owen  ;  1st  Serjjt.  Howard  Bruce  ;  3d  Sergt. 
Henry  Jacobs;  A.  H.  Fillman,  ^B.  F.  White,  Wm.  B.  Hurt, 
J.  W.  Reed,  J.  Y.  Guder,  Wm.  H.  Fie,  G.  W.  Hiltner,  Silas 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEKS.      513 

Kelley,  W.  H.  Yergcr,  A.  Casselberry,  Jno.  J.  Sclioll,  Jos. 
Fizone,  M.  Hiltner,  J.  W.  Truscott,  Thomas  B.  Yergcr,  R.  B. 
Lindsay,  E.  R.  Worth,  J.  Wood,  W.  C.  Hansell,  W.  Allen,  H. 
K.  Adleman,  M.  Boyer,  J.  Callendcr,  E.  Charles,  M.  II.  Dunn, 

E.  M.  Johns,   W.  Kulp,  R.  McKevin.  E.  W.  Reed,  A.  Went- 
zel,  J.  Wisler,  G.  D.  Williams,  S.  D.  Weidncr,  J.  C.  Young. 

Co.  G. — Capt.  Peter  A.  Gaulin  ;  1st  Lieut.  John  R.  Gillil- 
land  ;  3d  Lieut.  George  B.  Campbell ;  J.  Gunsalles,  C.  B. 
Stoncroacl,  George  Decker,  W.  Heichel,  E.  Shannon,  G.  Du- 
mont,  D.  Youts,  D.  C.  Ammerman,  L.  Cartuyval,  J.  J. 
Peters,  J.  Ammerman,  J.  Casker,  R.  Hinton,  J.  E.  Wilt,  L. 
Bowes,  J.  Heinel,  S.  Moore,  T.  McCafferty,  B.  McHarney,  P. 
Powers,  N.  Rolley,  G.  Wertz. 

Co.  H.— Capt.  J,  Merrill  Linn  ;  1st  Lieut.  William  F.  Camp 
bell  ;  3d  Lieut,  Jacob  H.  Santo  ;  II.  McClure,  D.  G.  Brown, 
G.  Breon,  H.  Hause,  H.  J.  Lingennan,  A.  Durst,  H.  Fogle- 
man,  B.  Dietrick,  R.  Baker,  J.  Moore.  A.  Bernade,  G.  W. 
Carey,  J.  Pike,  A.  Henry,  J.  Hart/,  T.  P.  Mars,  J.  Phliger, 
P.  Smith,  J.  II.  Smith,  F.  Smith. 

Co.  I. — Capt.  George  W.  Bisbing  ;  1st  Lieut  George  Schall  ; 
2d  Lieut.  Mark  R.  Supplee  ;  1st  Sergt.  Tliomas  H.  Parker  ; 
3d  Sergt.  George  W.  Patterson  ;  3d  Sergt.  John  R.  Davis  ; 
4th  Sergt.  George  Carney  ;  5th  Sergt.  Stephen  S.  Davis  ; 
1st  Corp.  James  Cameron  ;  3d  Corp.  William  Pope;  3d  Corp. 
George  W.  S.  Pennell  ;  4th  Corp.  Lewis  Patterson  ;  5th  Corp. 
John  M.  Engle  ;  Cth  Corp.  James  Tinncy  ;  Musicians,  J.  J. 
Tomkins,  James  Chase  ;  Privates' — Albert  H.  Bisbing,  Sam 
uel  E.  Bradbury,  Charles  Baley,  Thomas  Cornog,  Edward 
Doyle,  Henry  Clay  Davis,  Charles  V.  Evans,  George  W. 
Fulton,  Philip  Hattel,  Michael  Harrington,  James  H.  Hib- 
bert,  Frederick  Holbine,  Francis  R.  Keating.  John  Murphy, 
Thomas  Rinehart,  Thomas  Troy,  Abraham  Wampole. 

Co.  K. — Capt.  George  P.  Carman  ;  I  st  Lieut.  -  -  (va 
cancy)  ;  3d  Lieut.  Franklin  Beale  ;  J.  Freyburger,  J.  Hawk, 

F.  B.    Sterner,  J.  Vanlew,    D.    W.    Eichman,    J.    C.    Diller, 
Theo.   Moses,  Uriah  Dean,  F.  S.  Moyer,  T.  C.  Pierce.  J.  Gib 
son,   T.    Oden welder,    J.   Barnhart, 'C.   E.   Cole,  F.    Truxell, 
J.  P.  Huber,  J.  Button,  D.  Shingle,  J.  Truxell,  T.  Foster,  M.  S. 
Adams  W.  D.  Ritter,  J.  Babcock,  S.  Cross'j;rove,  A.  Frey.  II. 
Gangwer,  W.   R.  Logan,    F.  Schep,  W.  H.  Vogel,   J.  Wine- 
garden. 

The  above  is  the  original  re-enlistment  muster-in  rolls  of  the 
51st  Regiment  Pennsylvania  Veteran  Volunteers. 

On  the  night  of  the  13th  of  January,  at  11  o'clock, 
orders  were  received  by  Maj.  Bolton  to  prepare  to 
leave  Blain's  Cross-roads  for  home,  to  enjoy  the 
promised  thirty  days'  furlough,  and  to  recruit  the 
regiment.  The  satisfaction  that  only  such  an  order 

could  give  was  instantly  discernible,   for  when   it 

23 


514     HISTOEY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIEST   KEGIMENT 

came  in  the  regiment  was  enjoying  a  quiet  sleep ; 
but  all  were  roused  up  to  hear  "  the  sound  of  glad 
tidings  of  exceeding  great  joy,"  and  such  whooping 
and  yelling  as  went  through  the  woods  that  night, 
was,  as  it  were,  enough  to  make  the  very  mountains 
tremble.  It  was  far  into  the  small  hours  of  the 
morning  before  perfect  quiet  was  restored,  and  the 
men  sought  their  little  shelter  tents  to  dream  of  huge 
pies,  roast  turkeys,  beef,  and  the  thousand  other 
delicacies  that  had  been  denied  them  for  the  past 
two  and  a-half  years,  but  which  there  were  prospects 
now  of  soon  meeting  on  that  board  around  which 
loved  ones  would  greet  us  as  if  arisen  from  the  grave. 
Who  but  the  soldiers  can  picture  to  themselves  the 
joy  and  high  anticipations  that  beat  in  every  pulsa 
tion  of  the  soldier's  heart  at  the  prospect  of  a  thirty 
days'  furlough,  with  a  pocket  full  of  money? 

The  only  trouble  now  among  the  men  was,  how 
are  we  to  march  through  the  snow  and  frost  bare 
footed?  Clothing  of  all  kinds  was  scarce  — very 
little  to  be  had,  but  "Stevie"  was  doing  his  utmost 
to  relieve  their  necessities  as  far  as  lay  in  his  power. 

Col.  Hartranft  interested  himself  in  obtaining  a 
lot  of  green  hides  for  the  men  to  make  themselves 
moccasins,  that  they  might  be  able  to  march  to 
Nicholasville,  Ky.,  where  a  complete  outfit  was  ex 
pected  to  be  drawn.  The  hides  were  soon  cut  out 
into  coverings  for  the  feet,  and  that  much  was  a  sat 
isfaction  and  a  hope.  The  men  now  set  themselves 
to  work  making  them  by  sewing  together  with 
thread  and  needle.  Some  few  who  understood  the 
shoemaker's  delicate  art  of  making  a  waxed-end  had 
rather  the  advantage.  All  were  now  busy  as  bees. 
The  major,  in  filling  up  and  signing  of  orders,  mus- 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      515 

ter  rolls,  inspection  and  requisition  papers,  ordnance 
and  quartermaster  returns,  and  a  hundred  other 
duties  imposed  on  him  as  a  result  of  re  enlistment. 
The  adjutant,  with  settling  up  his  books  of  the 
regiment,  posting  and  filing  of  orders  and  letters, 
receiving  and  distributing  orders.  The  quarter 
master,  with  hunting  up  forage  to  issue  to  his  teams 
for  the  march,  and  of  whatever  rations  he  could  find 
for  his  men.  The  orderly-sergeants  of  the  compa- 
panies  making  out  the  discharge  papers  of  each  man, 
who  was  now  a  veteran,  filling  up  blank  muster-out 
and  muster-in  rolls  for  their  respective  companies, 
answering  the  orderly's  call  every  few  minutes  at 
the  adjutant's  tent,  filling  up  clothing,  camp,  and 
garrison  returns,  making  out  duplicate  copies  of 
ordnance  returns,  and  seeing  the  orders  as  issued 
were  being  carried  out  in  their  companies  in  correct 
order,  to  expedite  the  many  preparations  made  for 
the  "  gay  and  happy  "  march  that  was  soon  to  take 
them  away  from  so  much  suffering. 

The  men,  too,  were  busy;  those  that  possessed  the 
articles  were  washing  their  shirts,  drawers,  and  stock 
ings,  sewing  on  buttons,  patching,  sewing  up  rips; 
darning  stockings,  mending  knapsacks  and  haver 
sacks,  cleaning  guns  and  accoutrements,  shaving, 
washing,  &c.,  all,  all  in  the  sweet  anticipation  of  soon 
being  home. 

At  length  the  happy  day  arrived.  Monday,  the 
18th  of  January,  1861,  the  veteran  5 1st  bade  farewell 
to  Blain's  Cross  roads  and  at  seven  o'clock  in  the 
morning  took  up  their  line  of  march  for  home. 

The  evening  before  the  snow  fell  to  the  depth  of 
three  to  four  inches.  The  air  ^was  bitter  cold,  but 
as  the  sun  rose  higher  in  the  heavens  the  snow  began 


516     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

to  soften.  The  raw-hide  moccasins  retarded  march 
ing  from  their  immense  weight,  being  all  made  with 
the  hair  on  the  outside,  they  held  all  the  water,  snow, 
and  mud  like  a  sponge,  each  one  weighing  ten  to 
twelve  pounds.  The  road  in  the  rear  of  the  regi 
ment,  after  the  first  mile  had  been  marched,  looked 
as  if  it  had  witnessed  a  hasty  retreat.  Moccasins, 
camp-kettles,  and  everything  that  impeded  marching 
was  left  along  the  road.  One  man,  Thomas  Troy, 
marched  the  whole  distance  from  Blain's  Cross 
roads  to  Crab  Orchard,  Ky.,  without  shoes  or  stock 
ings,  and  was  there  ahead  of  Col.  Hartranft,  who  was 
on  horseback,  and  rode  far  in  advance  of  the  regi 
ment. 

The  regiment  marched  the  route  step.  Every  man 
seemed  to  go  on  his  own  hook — all  pushing  ahead 
as  fast  as  they  were  able;  but  from  the  horrible 
condition  of  the  roads  the  men  were  scattered  from 
front  to  rear,  at  least  five  miles.  Some  were  in  good 
condition  and  led  the  column,  while  others  were  not 
sj  fortunate,  and  would,  from  necessity,  be  left  be 
hind  to  struggle  along  the  best  they  could.  The 
teams  followed  in  the  rear,  and  as  Lieut.  Stephens 
came  along  at  the  head  of  his  train,  he  could  see 
here  and  there  lying  on  the  roadside  a  poor,  "  played 
out "  soldier,  and  his  generous  heart  would  well  up 
with  sympathy,  and  express  it  by  taking  the  ex 
hausted  one's  knapsack  and  gun  and  putting  it  in 
the  train,  while  his  poor  mules  would  be  staggering 
under  the  already  overloaded  wagons,  then  getting 
off  his  horse  he  would  put  the  weary  man  on  in  his 
stead,  a  .d  foot  it  ahead  of  his  train  in  the  miry  road. 
Invariably  the  man  thus  helped  along  on  his  painful 
march,  would  be  reasonable  enough,  after  riding  a 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      517 

couple  of  miles,  to  return  the  horse  to  "  Stevie,"  with 
many  thanks,  only  for  the  horse  to  be  turned  over 
to  another  unfortunate  whom  the  quartermaster 
might  chance  to  meet. 

W.  Percy  Schall,  the  mail  carrier  or  messenger 
of  the  51st,  who  was  in  possession  of  a  horse,  did 
the  same  thing,  and  never  seemed  so  happy  as  when 
he  was  walking  alongside  of  his  horse,  with  a  poor 
cripple  riding.  O,  is  it  not  beautiful  to  see  such 
sweet  oases  in  such  a  vast  desert ! 

The  first  day's  march  took  the  regiment  about 
seventeen  miles  nearer  home,  where  it  encamped  in 
a  woods  on  the  left  hand  side  of  the  road  going  to 
wards  Tazewell,  Tenn.  Such  shelters  as  could  the 
most  readily  be  put  up  for  the  night  were  built. 
The  air  now  was  piercing  cold.  Huge  log  fires 
were  built  in  front  oT  the  respective  quarters  of  the 
men,  and  kept  burning  all  night  to  keep  the  wet  and 
bemired  soldiers  from  freezing. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  19th  the  regiment 
again  set  forth  on  the  road  to  Tazewell,  arriving 
within  a  short  distance  of  it,  making  about  twenty- 
two  miles  that  day,  and  camping  for  the  night  in  a 
pine  woods,  surrounded  by  the  Clinch  mountains. 
Pickets  were  here  posted,  as  the  rebel  guerrillas 
were  scouting  around  and  through  the  woods,  making 
it  unsafe  to  camp  without  that  precaution.  It  was 
some  time  before  sundown  when  the  regiment  reaphed 
its  camping-ground,  and  long  after  nightfall  before 
the  teams  got  in,  but  later  still  when  the  last  strag 
gler  arrived.  The  quartermaster  here  issued  a  little 
corn  meal  to  the  men ;  but  their  eagerness  to  get 
home  took  away  their  appetite,  and  nothing  but  soft 
bread,  pies  and  puddings,  sausage  and  scrapple, 


518     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY  FIRST   REGIMENT 

which  stared  them  in  the  face,  though  a  great  ways 
off,  could  induce  them  to  care  whether  rations  were 
issued  or  not. 

On  Wednesday,  the  20th,  at  7  A.  M.,  the  column 
was  again  in  motion,  and  passed  through  Tazewell 
and  camped  in  a  barren  field  on  the  estate  of  a 
brother  of  Maj.  Gen.  Eobert  Patterson,  of  first  Bull 
Eun  notoriety. 

On  the  21st  the  regiment  crossed  the  Cumberland 
mountains,  into  Kentucky,  at  the  Gap. 

Nothing  of  particular  interest  occurred  in  crossing 
the  Log  and  Wild  Cat  mountains,  or  anywhere  along 
the  line,  except  the  passing  of  the  different  streams 
of  water,  which  were  now  worthy  of  the  names  of 
rivers.  The  Clinch,  the  Cumberland,  the  Tennessee, 
the  Little  Eockcastle,  the  Big  Eockcastle,  were 
now  swelled  to  the  size  of  respectable  rivers.  These 
rivers  were  all  forded  in  October,  on  the  advent  of 
the  51st  into  Tennessee;  but  the  heavy  rains  and 
deep  snows  melting  on  the  mountains  sent  the  cur 
rents  down  the  channels  with  an  impetuosity  that 
was  fearful  to  behold.  Another  event  occurred ;  the 
regiment,  after  passing  through  Barboursville,  went 
into  camp  along  the  banks  of  a  small  creek,  about 
one  and  a  half  miles  north  of  the  town.  The  men 
who  were  on  the  advance,  after  selecting  their  shelter 
for  the  night,  returned  to  the  town,  where  a  ball  or 
party  was  being  held  by  the  rebel  citizens.  Our 
Yankees,  wishing  to  trip  it  on  the  "  light  fantastic," 
concluded  they  would  volunteer  their  presence;  but 
secesh  not  accepting  the  generous  offer,  claimed  the 
right  to  eject  their  would-be  visitors.  The  women 
(for  none  were  ladies)  screamed  at  the  top  of  their 
voices,  and  left  the  room ;  a  fight  ensued,  in  which 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      519 

the  Yankees  were  the  victors,  holding  the  saloon  and 
the  music  at  all  hazards,  until  they  thought  it  near 
time  to  get  to  their  camp  outside  of  the  town.  But 
previous  to  "  evacuating,"  each  man  armed  himself 
with  a  canteen  full  of  pure  old  Bourbon,  which 
helped  him  along  on  his  next  day's  march  by 
strengthening  his  spirit  and  weakening  his  muscles. 

The  regiment  arrived  at  Crab  Orchard  on  the 
afternoon  of  the  28th,  being  ten  days  since  it  left 
Blain's  Cross  Eoads.  Marching  through  the  town,  it 
went  into  camp  in  a  field  just  outside,  on  the  right 
of  the  pike  going  towards  Lancaster,  Ky.  Here  was 
met  a  large  number  of  men  belonging  to  the  51st, 
also  Lieut.  Col.  Schall,  on  his  way  back  to  rejoin  his 
regiment,  after  being  home  on  a  leave  of  absence. 

On  the  29th  the  regiment  camped  near  Hickman's 
Bridge,  on  the  Kentucky  river.  Taking  an  early 
start  the  next  morning,  it  crossed  the  bridge  at  sun 
rise,  and  arrived  at  Camp  Nelson  about  8  A.  M.,  on 
Saturday,  the  30th,  1S64,  making  the  whole  distance, 
one  hundred  and  ninety-one  miles,  in  eleven  days 
and  one  hour. 

As  soon  as  the  regiment  arrived  at  Camp  Nelson 
a  full  supply  of  all  kinds  of  clothing  was  drawn  and 
issued  from  a  large,  newly-built  frame  storehouse. 
The  teams  were  turned  in,  if  they  could  be  termed 
teams,  for  the  poor  mules  were  in  a  most  pitiable 
condition,  worn  out,  galled,  and  in  a  starving  condi 
tion  ;  merely  their  skins  stretched  over  a  bony  frame; 
nothing  more.  They  had  seen  terrible  usage.  So 
poor  and  miserable  were  they  that  in  the  mornings 
when  they  were  fed  for  the  day's  march,  some  of  them 
had  to  be  helped  to  get  upon  their  feet  so  they  could 
eat  their  forage.  Why  such  teams  were  issued  to 


520      HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Lieut.  Stephens  for  such  a  long  and  mountainous 
march  is  more  than  can  be  divined.  Some  that  left 
Blain's  Cross  Beads  never  reached  Camp  Nelson ; 
they  gave  out  and  were  left  along  the  road,  either  to 
starve  to  death  or  to  be' picked  up  by  another  pass 
ing  train,  and  to  be  again  harnessed  up  in  the  place 
of  another  mule  which  had  given  out;  but  one  that 
got  clear  of  his  wagon  at  the  bridge  just  outside  of 
Crab  Orchard  made  that  his  final  resting-place. 
The  poor  animal  fell  down  from  exhaustion,  and  the 
gears  were  taken  off  of  him  so  that  he  could  get  up  ; 
but  in  his  struggles,  being  on  the  edge  of  the  bank 
generally  found  at  either  end  of  a  stone  bridge,  he 
began  rolling  down  the  embankment,  and  only 
stopped  when  he  rolled  into  the  water.  Not  having 
strength  enough  to  help  himself,  he  finally  drowned. 

After  getting  new  and  clean  clothing,  the  men  all 
betook  themselves  to  a  stream  of  water,  and  gave 
themselves  such  a  cleaning  as  they  had  not  had  for 
four  months.  The  regiment  then  marched  to  Nicho- 
lasville,  to  take  cars  on  the  Kentucky  Central  Rail 
road  for  Covington,  where  it  arrived  on  the  31st,  and 
was  taken  to  the  outskirts  of  the  city  to  await  fur 
ther  orders. 

On  February  1st  the  51st  crossed  the  Ohio  river  at 
Cincinnati,  and  was  marched  up  to  the  Fifth  street 
market-house,  where  it  quartered  for  further  orders, 
and  to  receive  the  whole  pay  and  bounty  due  from 
the  original  enlistment  and  the  one  month's  advance 
pay,  the  first  instalment  of  the  $402  bounty,  includ 
ing  the  $2  premium  for  the  veteran  enlistment;  but 
when  the  rolls  were  presented  to  the  paymaster,  he 
refused  to  pay  on  them,  and  they  were  rejected. 
This  cog  out  of  the  marching  machine  took  several 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      521 

claj^s  to  repair.  A  complete  set  of  muster-out  and 
muster-in  rolls  had  to  be  got  out  anew,  which  occu 
pied  nearly  four  days  to  accomplish.  The  most 
rapid  penmen  were  in  great  demand,  and  they 
labored  hard  to  get  through  as  soon  as  possible. 

While  the  new  rolls  were  being  made  out,  the 
regiment  occupied  the  market  house  on  Fifth 
street,  for  their  quarters  while  in  that  city.  The 
officers,  both  field  and  staff',  took  up  their  quarters 
in  the  various  hotels  of  the  city.  While  the  regi 
ment  was  lying  here,  awaiting  the  completion  of  the 
rolls,  its  friends  at  home  were  making  extensive 
preparations  to  greet  them  with  a  hearty  welcome, 
as  testified  by  the  following,  which  appeared  in  the 
"Defender?  of  January  26th,  1864,  viz.: 

"A  joyful  telegram  announced  to  our  citizens  last  week,  from 
Col.  HARTRANFT,  that  the  51st  regiment  had  generally  re-en 
listed,  and  would  be  home  about  the  fifth  of  next  month,  or  a 
week  from  next  Saturday.  The  probability  is,  that  the  time  of 
their  return  maybe  extended  beyond  that  point  somewhat,  but 
at  any  rate  in  the  course  of  a  few  days  thereafter,  they  will  be 
amongst  us.  A  meeting  of  our  citizens  was  called  last  Friday 
evening,  to  make  suitable  preparations  for  their  reception. 
We  hope  that  on  this  occasion  there  may  be  such  a  hearty  wel 
come  given  them  by  the  entire  community  as  will  make  these 
heroes'  hearts  glad.  We  all  remember  the  spontaneous  out 
burst  of  honor  that  was  awarded  the  4th  regiment  as  it  left 
our  borough  on  that  clear,  spring  morning,  in  April,  1861,  and 
the  hearty  God  bless  you  that  was  given  our  51st  as  they  left 
for  the  front  of  the  battle,  years  since. 

"  These  men  have  now  won  for  themselves  imperishable 
honor,  on  almost  a  dozen  fiercely  contested  battlefields,  and  no 
regiment  among  the  million  men  that  have  been  battling  for 
the  right,  have  accomplished  or  suffered  more,  and  in  every  cir 
cumstance  and  position  they  have  been  placed,  have  come  forth 
covered  with  more  honors  and  a  brighter  glory.  (Sometimes 
such  occasions  as  these  returns  are  made  use  of  by  politicians 
and  demagogues  to  flatter  men  for  their  own  selfish  purposes, 
an  outburst  of  popular  sentiment  furnishes  some  men  with  an 
opportunity  to  display  themselves  in  a  windy  harangue — as  a 
pin  lets  out  the  contents  of  a  gas  bag.)  Let  the  reception  be  a 
grand  ovation  of  the  people  to  do  respect  to  the  men  that  have 
fought  and  bled  for  us  on  many  a  battlefield.  All  hail  !  all 
honor!  to  the  Fifty-first.  WELCOME!  WELCOME!  THRICE 
WELCOME  HOME  !" 

23* 


522      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

"At  the  town  meeting  held  last  Friday  evening — to  make 
arrangements  for  the  reception  of  the  51st  regiment,  after  ap 
pointing  a  committee  to  make  the  necessary  preparations — a 
resolution  was  unanimously  adopted,  requesting  the  town 
council  of  the  borough  of  Norristown  to  appropriate  a  fund  for 
the  purpose  of  paying  a  bounty  of  three  hundred  dollars  to  each 
one  of  the  51st  regiment  that  has  or  shall  re-enlist,  or  to  any 
new  recruit  that  should  enlist  in  this  regiment.  This  is  a 
move  in  the  right  direction,  and  if  our  loud  professions  of 
respect  and  admiration  for  these  war-worn  heroes  of  a  dozen 
battle-fields  mean  anything,  let  us  put  our  professions  into 
practice,  by  giving  them  this  bounty.  The  resolution  should 
be  made  so  as  to  authorize  the  payment  of  this  bounty  to  every 
veteran  from  our  town,  who  shall  re-enlist,  no  matter  to  what 
regiment  in  active  service  they  may  be  attached.  We  have 
understood  that  a  number  of  our  citizens  are  in  other  parts  of 
the  grand  National  Army,  and  if  they  are  willing  to  again 
enter  the  field,  let  the  borough  pay  each  man  that  counts  in 
our  quota. 

"  This,  gentlemen,  must  be  done!  We  know  that  there  has 
been  a  good  deal  said  in  praise  of  the  regiment  commanded  by 
Col.  HARTKANFT,  but  talk  is  cheap  and  quite  unprofitable, 
without  corresponding  deeds'.  And  whatever  question  there 
be  in  the  minds  of  any  of  our  citizens,  of  the  appropriation  of 
money  out  of  the  common  treasury  to  new  recruits,  there  can 
be  nothing  in  the  way,  in  furnishing  those  who  have  borne 
their  part  in  the  terrific  contests  of  the  last  three  years,  in  re 
ceiving  a  bounty.  While  other  places  are  giving  three  hundred 
dollars,  and  more  too,  to  raw  recruits,  we  dare  not  hold  back 
from  showing  our  appreciation  of  the  valuable  services  our  men 
have  rendered  the  nation  in  its  trial,  by  withholding  what  is  so 
manifestly  their  due.  Every  veteran  from  our  borough,  or  that 
shall  represent  Norristown,  in  any  regiment,  in  the  active  future 
operations  of  our  army,  must  receive  three  hundred  dollars 
bounty  / 

"We  have  not  much  doubt  but  that  the  men  that  are  left, 
and  now  constitute  what  remains  of  the  51st  regiment, 
although  reduced  to  less  than  one-fourth  the  full  complement, 
are  really  worth  more  than  a  thousand  newly-enlisted  soldiers 
would  be.  If  we  have  paid  bounty  in  other  cas  s,  as  a  borough, 
and  last  summer  paid  five  dollars  a  week  to  the  militia,  surely 
the  men  who  have  been  three  years  fighting,  without  anything 
from  our  borough,  should  come  in  for  a  share  of  our  good  will 
practically  carried  out.  An  appropriation  by  the  town  council 
is  the  fairest  way  to  do  the  thing,  because  then  the  taxes  are 
apportioned  equally  among  our  citizens.  While  there  are 
many  men  who  are  always  willing  to  contribute  their  share  to 
this  war,  there  are  others  who  do  not  do  this  thing  in  propor 
tion  to  their  income  and  means.  We  shall  see  who  will  hold 
back  in  such  a  crisis. 

"After  considerable  delay  in  coming  to  any  conclusion,  be 
tween  the  citizens  in  favor  of  a  bounty  and  the  borough  coun 
ties,  the  following  has  been  adopted  :  The  borough  agrees  to 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      523 

pay  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  to  each  re-enlisted  volunteer 
from  our  borough,  in  the  51st  regiment,  and  the  same  amount 
to  all  new  recruits  in  that  regiment.  It  is  proposed  to  raise  the 
necessary  amount  of  money  for  this  purpose,  by  issuing  bonds 
immediately,  by  the  Councils,  conditioned  that  they  shall  be 
void  unless  the  Legislature  legalizes  the  borough  loan.  At 
first,  the  members  of  the  Town  Council  hesitated  to  assume  the 
responsibility  of  borrowing  money  and  issuing  bonds  for  which 
there  was  no  law.  By  the  present  agreement  the  citizens 
generally  assume  a  portion  of  the  responsibility,  because  if  the 
loan  is  not  legalized  the  man  that  loans  the  money  runs  the 
risk  of  the  loss.  By  this  means  the  citizens  generally  are 
deeply  interested  in  securing  an  act  to  legalize  the  loan  by  the 
borough. 

u  Some  may  think  that  it  is  running  too  great  a  risk  in  loan 
ing  money  to  the  borough  and  taking  a  bond  with  the  provision 
that  shall  make  it  void  in  case  it  is  not  nifde  legal  by  an 
act  of  the  Legislature.  But  there  is  scarcely  a  risk  in  this  mat 
ter,  for  the  Legislature  has  legalized  such  acts  with  but  little 
hesitancy,  and  even  in  cases  where  there  has  been  some  op 
position  ;  in  regard  to  our  borough  there  will  be  none  to  op 
pose.  A  petition  is  in  circulation,  and  very  generally  signed, 
requesting  the  Legislature,  at  their  earliest  practicable  moment, 
to  pass  an  act  that  shall  make  the  bonds  binding — and  this  will 
be  done  !  It  seems,  therefore,  that  so  far  as  Norristown  is  con 
cerned  we  have  the  arrangements  complete,  and  we  can  con 
fidently  hope  that  we  shall  be  able  to  find  volunteers  sufficient 
now  to  fill  our  entire  quota  under  all  the  calls,  without  resort 
ing  to  that  severe  measure — a  draft.  The  plan  seems  to  be  upon 
as  fair  a  basis  as  could  have  been  adopted,  under  the  different 
views  entertained  by  our  citizens. 

44  To  give  a  bounty  to  the  men  who  are  re-enlisting  in  the 
regiments  who  have  been  in  active  service  as  long  as  the  51st 
is  an  act  of  the  simplest  justice.  Instead  therefore  of  putting 
it  down  to  the  lowest  figure  we  should  have  made  it  as  large 
as  we  could  possibly  do  it.  What  citizens  for  thirteen  dollars, 
or,  with  the  bounty,  about  twenty  dollars  a  month,  would 
agree  to  do  the  work,  in  marching  and  in  camps  that  our  heroic 
men  have  done,  without  running  the  risk  of  life  in  a  single 
battle.  The  fact  is  Congress  should  at  once  make  the  pay  of 
a  private  a  dollar  a  day,  certainly  as  much  as  the  commonest 
laborer  can  earn  at  home.  The  admiration  of  the  soldier's  fel 
low-citizen  should  not  be  entirely  expended  in  that  very  cheap 
article  talk,  but  in  deeds,  both  to  the  volunteer  himself  and  to 
his  family  at  home.  Acts,  not  words — deeds,  not  fuss — are  the 
claims  of  the  hour." 

And  again  of  Feb.  2d,  1864,  in  the  same  paper : 

"  All  the  town  is  alive  with  notes  of  preparation  in  getting 
ready  for  the  reception  of  the  51st.  We  hope  the  arrangements 
for  that  event  will  be  on  a  scale  that  will  eclipse  anything  that 
has  ever  preceded  it  here  in  our  borough.  Let  every  house 


524     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

display  its  welcome  to  our  friends  coming  home  from  the  wars, 
and  every  citizen  show  their  admiration  of  these  men  that  have 
helped  to  keep  the  invader  from  our  own  soil.  For  terrible  as 
this  rebellion  has  been,  and  as  much  mourning  and  desolation 
as  it  has  brought,  yet  we  here  in  the  North  can  form  no  idea 
of  the  barren  desolation  it  has  produced  through  the  Southern 
States.  Towns  and  cities  destroyed — all  their  railroads  and 
means  of  travel — churches,  school-houses,  and  homesteads 
around  which  gathered  all  the  associations  and  endearments 
of  life  swept  away  as  with  a  tornado.  They  have  indeed, 
sowed  the  wind  and  reaped  the  whirlwind  ;  a  century  of  unin 
terrupted  prosperity  cannot  replace  many  portions  of  the  South 
as  it  was  before  the  insane  hand  of  rebellion  was  raised  to  de 
stroy  our  government. 

"Yet  had  it  not  been  for  the  self-denying  volunteer  rushing 
to  the  contest,  our  State,  and  our  fields  and  homes,  would  have 
shared  the  late  visited  in  the  South.  These  men  have  stood  as 
a  wall  of  fire  and  steel  between  us  and  our  enemies ;  let  us,  as 
we  look  at  Gettysburg,  the  decisive  battle  of  the  war,  remember 
what  we  have  been  saved  from.  In  remembering  this  let  us 
not  fail  to  do  honor  to  the  returning  heroes — our  sons  and 
brothers  and  dear  friends.  Fling  out  your  banners  and  wel 
come  from  every  house." 

It  appears  as  if  the  friends  of  the  regiment  were 
determined  to  furnish,  enough  to  satisfy  the  ''inner 
man,"  especially  of  drink,  on  its  reception  in  Norris- 
town,  as  the  following  from  the  Defender  of  Feb.  2, 
'6-i,  would  indicate : 

It  is  reported  that  the  Committee  of  Arrangements,  ap 
pointed  by  the  town  meeting,  for  the  reception  of  the  51  st  regi 
ment,  decided  to  purchase  from  Reading  six  or  eir/ht  barrel?  of 
ale.  That  will  be  more  than  a  gallon  apiece  to  each  returned 
soldier  belonging  to  our  borough  ;  and  further,  that  funds  have 
been  appropriated  and  a  sub-committee  appointed  to  go  to 
Reading  and  get  this  drug.  We  shall  watch  events  in  this 
line,  and  see  who  this  ale  is  really  intended  for.  This  matter 
may  need  some  ventilation  in  future. 

The  following  is  the  plan  of  reception  adopted  by 
a  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Norristown  : 

THE  RETURNING  SOLDIERS. — Preparations  for  their  Recep 
tion. —  Town  Meeting,  &c. — The  receipt  of  the  despatch  from 
Col  Hartranft,  and  announcement  among  our  people  that  the 
Fifty-firsjt  had  re-enlisted  and  were  coining  home  to  enjoy  their 
furlough,  at  an  early  day,  set  the  public  mind  to  work  to  devise 
proper  measures  of  welcome.  A  meeting  was  called  and  held 
at  Odd  Fellows'  Hall  last  Friday  evening  for  this  purpose,  over 
which  Colonel  James  Boyd  presided,  assisted  by  William  H. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  525 

Yerkcs  and  Mark  Thomson  as  Secretaries.  A  committee  of 
thirty-four  persons  was  appointed  to  report  a  suitable  plan  of 
reception.  The  following1  resolutions  having  been  reported  by 
them,  were  unanimously  adopted  : 

Resolved,  That  the  day  of  the  arrival  of  the  51st  Regiment  of 
Pennsylvania  Volunteers,  in  this  place,  be  celebrated  by  a 
general  suspension  of  business,  and  that  the  regiment  be  wel 
comed  by  a  military  and  civic  procession,  and  by  a  collation  at 
the  public  expense. 

Resolved,  That  the  burgess  and  town  councils  of  the  borough 
of  Norristowii  and  Bridgeport,  in  their  official  capacity,  be  a 
special  committee  to  receive  and  welcome  the  regiment,  and 
that  all  other  citizens,  without  distinction,  be  invited  to  be 
present,  and  participate  upon  the  occasion. 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  arrangements,  composed  of 
thirty-four  members,  be  appointed  by  the  Chairman,  to  make 
all  suitable  arrangements  for  the  purpose  of  effecting  the  object 
of  this  meeting. 

Resolved,  That  an  address  to  the  regiment,  on  the  part  of  the 
citizens  of  the  borough  of  Norristown  and  vicinity,  be  prepared 
and  delivered  upon  the  occasion,  and  the  committee  designated 

B.  E.  Chain,  Esq.,  to  deliver  the  same. 

The  report  of  the  committee  being  unanimously  adopted,  the 
Chairman  announced  the  following  named  gentlemen  the  Com 
mittee  of  Arrangements:  F.  Sullivan,  S.  E.  Hartranft,  S.  N. 
Rich,  Joseph  Beerer,  G.  N.  Corson,  S.  A.  Kreible,  James 
Hooven,  J.  B.  Dunlap,  F.  Derr,  Joseph  L.  Allebough,  Henry 

C.  Hill,  R.  E.  Taylor,  Lloyd  Jones,  Mark  Thomson,  E.  A. 
Banks,   C.  H.  Stinson,  Michael  Mooney,  Win.  H.  Yerkes,  B. 
M.  Boyer,  Charles  Hunsicker,  Walter  H.  Cooke,  Win.  Schall, 
R.  S.  Newbold,  Charles  Earnest,  Robert  Iredell,  A.  B.  Long- 
aker,  A.  J.  Anderson,  L.  E.  Corson,  J.  Grier  Ralston,   B.   B. 
Hughes,  Win.  H.  Holstein,  Andrew  Shainline,  J.  C.  Snyder,. 
William  B.  Rambo  ;   and,   on  motion,  the   Chairman  of  the 
meeting  was  appointed  Chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Ar 
rangements. 

On  motion  the  Committee  of  Arrangements  were  instructed 
to  extend  invitations  to  Gens.  Hancock,  Burnside,  and  Slem- 
mer  to  be  present  at  the  reception. 

On  motion  of  D.  Krause,  Esq.,  the  following  resolutions 
were  adopted  : 

Resolved,  That  Col.  Hartranft's  Fifty-first,  the  heroic  regi 
ment  which  went  from  our  midst  to  do  battle  for  the  Union, 
the  Constitution,  and  the  Flag,  and  amongst  the  foremost  did 
battle  in  the  twelve  engagements  of  Roanoke  Island,  New- 
bern,  Camden,  Manassas  No.  2,  Chantilly,  South  Mountain, 
Antietam,  Fredericksburg,  Vicksburg,  Jackson,  Campbell's 
Station,  and  Knoxville,  deserve  all  a  patriotic  people  can 
award  to  merit. 

Resolved,  That  we,  their  companions  and  friends,  give  all 
hail  to  them  in  this  meeting  for  their  services  as  officers  and 
privates. 

Resolved,  That  by  enlisting  again  after  being  reduced  to  less 


526     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

than  half  their  original  number  in  fighting  the  rebel  army, 
they,  as  officers  and  men,  show  themselves  as  the  true  stuff 
that  makes  an  American  army,  whether  the  war  be  to  repel  in 
vasion,  or  subdue  causeless,  lawless,  and  criminal  insurrection. 

Resolved,  That  this  meeting  will  make  every  suitable  arrange 
ment  to  give  to  this  hero  regiment  such  reception  on  arriving 
here,  as  will  tell  our  love  of  brave  soldiers  and  our  determined 
resistance  of  treason  wherever  or  however  that  may  be 
enacted. 

On  motion,  the  following  resolution  was  unanimously 
adopted : 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  meeting,  that  the  town 
council  of  the  borough  of  Norristown,  should  appropriate  out 
of  the  funds  of  the  borough,  at  least  three  hundred  dollars  to  all 
of  the  51st  Regiment  P.  V".,  who  have  re-enlisted  in  said  regi 
ment  for  three  years  or  during  the  war,  and  that  a  bounty  of 
three  hundred  dollars  be  paid  to  every  new  man  who  volun 
teers  in  said  regiment,  and  is  credited  to  this  borough,  to  the 
extent  of  our  quota. 

ROUTE  OF  ESCORT. — The  line  will  form  on  DeKalb  street,  in 
Bridgeport,  and  upon  the  arrival  of  the  51st  regiment,  will 
move  across  the  upper  bridge  to  Norristown  ;  thence  along  De 
Kalb  street  to  Egypt  street ;  down  Egypt  to  Franklin  ;  coun 
termarch  up  Egypt  to  Markley  ;  countermarch  down  Egypt  to 
Swede  street ;  up  Swede  to  Oak  ;  down  Oak  to  DeKalb  ;  down 
DeKalb  to  ReifFs  market  house,  where  a  collation  will  be 
served  up  for  the  regiment. 

At  the  same  time  Gov.  Curtin  issued  his  proclama 
tion  to  fill  up  the  regiments  of  Pennsylvania  troops 
in  the  9th  Army  Corps,  of  which  the  51st  was  one, 
by  recruiting.  The  following  is  the  proclamation  : 

HEADQUARTERS  P.  M.,  ADJ'T  GEN'S  DEP'T,       ) 
HARRISBURG,  Jan.  21st,  1864.  j 

The  War  Department  having  authorized  Maj.  Gen.  Winfield 
S.  Hancock  and  Maj.  Gen.  Ambrose  E.  Burnside,  two  of  the 
most  distinguished  commanders  in  our  army,  to  recruit  the 
2d  and  9th  Army  Corps,  now  under  their  respective  commands, 
to  fifty  thousand  men  each,  for  such  duty  as  may  be  specially 
assigned  to  said  corps  by  the  War  Department,  I  address  my 
self  to  the  patriotic  and  loyal  citizens  of  Pennsylvania,  ear 
nestly  invoking  them  to  .end  their  active  aid  to  Gens.  Hancock 
and  Burnside  in  the  prosecution  of  such  measures  as  they  may 
adopt,  under  the  regulations  of  the  War  Department  governing 
enlistments  in  this  State,  to  fill  up  the  Pennsylvania  regiments 
and  batteries  of  these  noble  corps. 

They  comprise  the  following  Pennsylvania  regiments  and 
batteries,  viz.  : 

In  the  3d  Army  Corps,  commanded  by  Maj.  Gen.  Hancock, 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  527 

are  the  53d,  69th,  71st,  72d,  81st,  100th,  116th,  140th,  145th,  and 
148th  regiments,  and  independent  batteries  C  and  F,  and  bat 
teries  F  and  G  of  the  1st  Pennsylvania  artillery. 

In  the  9th  Army  Corps,  commanded  by  Maj.  Gen.  Burn  side, 
are  the  45th  48th,  50th,  5lst,  and  100th  regiments,  and  Durell's 
independent  battery  D. 

The  reinforcement  of  our  victorious  armies  in  the  field  is  the 
only  means  of  bringing  the  rebellion  to  an  early  close,  and  of 
forever  sealing  the  fountain  of  civil  war.  Let  us  then  maintain 
the  illustrious  record  which  those  gallant  armies  have  already 
won,  and  effectively  aid  the  government  in  securing  a  glorious 
future  to  our  country,  by  filling  up  the  ranks  now  greatly 
reduced  by  disease  and  the  casualties  of  the  field. 

Full  information  regarding  bounties  and  enlistments  in  any 
of  the  Pennsylvania  organizations  attached  to  the  2d  and  9th 
Army  Corps,  will  be  found  in  the  published  circulars  of  Maj. 
Gens'.  Hancock  and  Burnside. 

By  order  of  A.  G.  CURTIN,  Gov.,  &c. 

A.  L.  RUSSELL,  Adjt.  Gen.  Penna. 

On  the  5th  of  February  the  complement  of  rolls 
(nine  to  a  company)  were  finished,  and  the  51st  P. 
V.  V.  received  its  full  pay  and  allowances,  and  on  the 
6th  marched  to  the  railroad  depot  and  took  the  mid 
night  train  for  the  east,  arriving  in  Harrisburg,  Pa., 
on  the  8th,  quartering  in  the  Soldiers'  Kefreshrnent 
Saloon,  nearly  opposite  the  lower  depot.  Here  they 
received  a  breakfast  which  was  a  disgrace  to  the 
whole  State.  A  tincup  of  what  purported  to  be 
coffee,  but  wasn't;  only  a  strange,  weak  mixture, 
sweetened  with  molasses,  a  slice  of  dry,  stale  bread, 
and  a  chunk  of  strong,  fat  pork.  Such  a  feast  as  that 
would  have  been  relished  by  the  men  five  or  six 
weeks  before,  but  not  now,  while  the  men  were  in  a 
civilized  community  and  had  plenty  of  money,  with 
a  chance  of  spending  it. 

The  saloon  doors  were  kept  closed  until  the  long 
table  was  prepared  for  the  men  to  come  in  and  eat. 
The  regiment  used  the  adjoining  rooms  as  quarters, 
the  officers  boarding  at  their  favorite  hotels.  When 
breakfast  was  ready  on  the  morning  of  the  9th,  the 


528     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   EEGIMENT 

saloon  doors  were  thrown  open  for  the  soldiers  to 
enter,  which  they  did  in  a  respectful,  orderly  man 
ner;  but  as  the  three  or  four  on  the  right  reached 
the  table  they  tasted  their  coffee  and  bread  and  pork, 
but  disliking  all  three  they  "  about  faced  and  marched 
to  the  rear,"  soon  followed  by  the  whole  regiment  in 
disgust,  for  they  had  not  been  offered  such  a  repast 
in  States  on  which  they  had  no  claim.  Baltimore — 
yes,  rebel  Baltimore  did  far,  far  better  than  that ! 
The  men  were  clamorous  to  get  away  from  such  un 
precedented  liberality,  and  wanted  to  get  home. 

Col.  Hartranft,  who  preceded  the  regiment  to  liar- 
risburg,  telegraphed  on  to  Norristown  the  following 
dispatch,  as  it  appeared  in  the  Norristown  papers  of 
the  8th  of  February. 

HARRISBURG,  Feb.  7th,  1864. 

To  JAMES  BOYD  :— The  regiment  will  reach  Bridgeport  at  1 
o'clock  P.  M.  (Tuesday  the  9th).  J.  F.  HARTRANFT. 

The  following  order  was  published  on  receipt  of 
the  despatch : 

The  marshals  of  the  several  bodies  who  propose  to  partici 
pate  in  the  reception  of  the  above  regiment  will  meet  at  Brow- 
er's  Hotel,  Monday  evening,  February  8th,  at  6j  o'clock. 

R.  E.  TAYLOR,  Chief  Marshal. 

The  Committee  of  Thirty-four  will  meet  in  the  Council 
Chamber  at  7  o'clock  p.  M.  on  Monday. 

JAMES  BOYD,  Chairman,  fyc. 

Prior  to  the  51st  leaving  Harrisburg,  an  invita 
tion  was  tendered  the  five  companies  of  the  left  of 
the  regiment  to  participate  in  the  hospitalites  to  be 
offered  it  on  its  arrival  in  Norristown,  but  it  was 
repectfully  declined  as  it  only  would  make  their 
time  a  couple  of  days  shorter  to  enjoy  their  fur 
loughs  at  their  respective  homes,  for  it  must  be  re 
membered  that  those  companies,  B,  B,  G,  II  and  K, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      529 

were  from  a  far  extent  of  country  being  made  up  from 
seven  or  eight  different  counties. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  9th  the  whole  regi 
ment  was  astir  preparing  to  leave  for  home,  com 
panies  A,  C,  D,  F  and  I,  for  Norristown,  Co.  B,  for 
Easton,  and  the  other  companies  to  their  individual 
homes.  At  8  A.  M.  the  Norristown  companies  took 
the  cars  and  steamer  for  Bridgeport  where  it  arrived 
at  twenty  minutes  past  1  P.  M. 

The  cars  containing  the  soldiers  had  been  cut 
loose  from  the  train  and  halted  near  the  turnpike 
at  the  crossing. 

The  crowd  that  had  assembled  to  greet  the  regi 
ment  beggars  description  ;  look  whatever  way  one 
might,  nothing  but  a  surging,  seething  mass  of  hu 
manity  would  greet  the  eye.  The  father  looking 
for  his  boy  in  blue,  the  mother  frantic  with  joy,  the 
wife,  how  shall  she  be  described,  as  she  stood  aloof 
with  her  children  clinging  around  her,  all  exerting 
their  eyes  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  husband  and 
father.  Sweethearts  were  there  too,  brothers  and 
sisters,  friends  and  entire  strangers  were  all  there  to 
offer  their  congratulations  to  the  returned  veteran 
volunteers.  How  many  assembled  in  that  throng 
who  came  with  their  hearts  beating  high  with  the 
joy  of  grasping  that  dear  one's  hand  whom  they  fully 
expected  to  meet  at  that  happy  moment !  but  in 
stead,  received  the  stunning  answer,  "  he  is  dead !" 
How  many  cannot  be  told,  but  certain  it  is,  there 
were  some  amongst  that  class.  An  aged  man  whose 
silvery  hair  betokened  threescore  years  and  ten, 
had  corne  in  his  carriage  with  a  daughter,  and  an 
empty  seat  to  take  the  loved  one  home  where  they 
could  have  him  all,  all  to  themselves.  The  mother 


530      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

remained  at  home  to  have  prepared  something  nice 
to  tempt  a  dainty  appetite,  but  alas!  seeing  the  1st 
sergeant  of  his  dear  "  Dick's  "  company  he  elbows 
Ijis  way  through  ihe  crowd  and  reaches  the  sergeant 
with  the  inquiry,  lt  Has  Dick  got  out  of  the  cars 
yet?"  the  sergeant  used  to  seeing  death  around,  an- 
swered  in  an  indifferent  tone,  "  Why  Dick's  dead  and 
buried  long  ago,  didn't  you  know  it?"  The  old 
man's  heart  was  crushed,  his  chin  dropped  on  his 
bosom,  and  he  returned  to  his  daughter  who  was 
sitting  in  the  carriage  awaiting  the  father  and 
brother's  appearance,  but  there  came  no  brother — he 
lay  sleeping  his  last  sleep  afar  off  at  Camp  Nelson, 
Ky.  What  must  have  been  that  aged  mother's 
grief  when  she  discovered  the  cause  of  the  returned 
vacant  seat  in  the  carriage  that  was  to  have  brought 
so  much  joy  to  her  (now  broken)  heart !  Yes,  poor 
Dick  was  dead,  and  had  died  two  hundred  miles 
away  from  his  regiment,  or  a  friend  who  could  have 
informed  his  parents  of  his  decease.  It  may  seem 
singular  that  none  of  his  comrades  in  the  regiment 
had  sent  a  line  to  his  parents  apprising  them  of  his 
death,  but  not  a  man  that  knew  Dick  expected  any 
thing  else  than  to  meet  him  at  Camp  Nelson  and  to 
bring  him  home  with  them,  but  on  inquiring  for 
him  at  that  place,  they  were  astounded  to  learn  that 
he  died  January  1st,  1864. 

After  the  greetings  were  partly  over  at  the  cars, 
several  ineffectual  attempts  had  to  be  made  to  form 
the  regiment  before  it  was  accomplished,  and  then 
it  was  taken  in  hand  by  the  committee  and  marched 
over  the  route  as  published.  The  town  wore  the 
appearance  of  a  holiday,  business  was  entirely  sus 
pended,  and  the  streets  were  thronged  with  thou- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  531 

sands  from  the  distant  country  around.  After  the 
route  was  traversed  and  the  market  house  reached, 
a  neat  speech  was  addressed  to  the  veterans  from 
the  steps  of  that-  building  by  B.  E.  Chain,  Esq.,  on 
behalf  of  the  committee  of  reception  and  the  citi 
zens.  After  which  the  regiment  marched  in  to  the 
market  house  and  enjoyed  a  feast  worthy  of  the 
name,  and  creditable  to  all  who  prepared  it ;  all  the 
delicacies  of  the  season  were  there  until  the  staunch 
tables  manifestly  groaned  beneath  the  weight.  After 
partaking  of  the  splendid  collation,  the  companies 
were  again  formed,  the  men  received  their  furloughs, 
were  dismissed  for  thirty  days,  and  allowed  to  take 
their  guns  and  accoutrements  home  with  them,  under 
the  injunction  to  keep  them  clean,  and  to  report  to 
their  company  commanders  for  duty  at  the  expira 
tion  of  thirty  days.  They  were  now  to  enjoy  thirty 
days  of  feasting  and  pleasure  of  which  every  minut  j 
was  applied  with  assiduity  to  that  purpose. 


CHAPTEE    II. 

Reorganization  of  the  51st — Leaving  home — Harrisburg  again 
— "  Taking  a  french  " — Deaths  on  furlough — Arrival  at  Bal 
timore — Annapolis — Camp  Parole — Letter  from  Lieut.-Col. 
Schall — Camp  Bell — Correspondence — Recruiting  detail — 
Visit  from  Generals  Burnside  and  Grant — Preparing  to  go 
to  the  front. 

ON  the  9th  of  March  the  regiment,  or  the  five 
companies  from  Norristown,  met  in  that  borough  to 
take  their  departure  for  Camp  Curtin  at  Harrisburg. 
At  an  early  hour  they  embarked  on  the  cars  of  the 


532      HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Beading  railroad.  At  the  crossing  of  the  pike  where 
they  disembarked  thirty  days  before,  their  friends 
again  assembled  to  see  them  depart,  with  different 
feelings  to  those  felt  on  the  occasion  of  their  late  re 
ception  ;  then  they  were  all  smiles  and  joy,  bat  now 
their  smiles  were  turned  to  tears,  their  joys  to  al 
most  inconsolable  grief.  At  last  the  locomotive's 
whistle  was  sounded,  and  as  the  wheels  slowly  be 
gan  to  revolve,  the  crowd  and  the  soldiers  making 
the  welkin  ring  with  lusty  cheers,  were  separated 
from  each  other,  some  never  to  meet  again.  The 
soldiers  were  in  fine  spirits  and  had  seen  pleasure 
enough,  and  were  well  satisfied  as  they  sped  on  their 
way  to  camp,  while  their  friends  with  sad  hearts 
turned  their  steps  to  that  now  more  than  dreary 
home. 

Arriving  in  Harrisburg  in  the  early  part  of  the 
afternoon,  the  five  left  companies  were  found  to  be 
already  there  ;  the  regiment  formed  in  line,  marched 
out  to  Camp  Curtin  where  Wedge  and  Sibley  tents 
were  issued,  then  pitched,  and  the  men  began  again 
their  old  routine  of  camp  life. 

The  numbers  of  the  regiment  were  largely  in 
creased  while  home  on  furlough  by  the  acquisition 
of  recruits.  Eecruiting  in  camp  went  on  as  it  did 
in  other  places. 

The  regiment  left  Bridgeport  under  the  command 
of  Lieut.  Col.  Schall,  Col.  Hartranft  remaining  in 
Norristown  for  several  days  after  the  departure.  A 
few  men  also  remained  behind  with  the  consent  of 
Lieut.-Colonel  Schall,  as  also  did  a  few  without  the 
consent  of  any  officer.  It  was  amusing  to  see  this 
latter  class,  as  they  promenaded  the  streets  of  Nor 
ristown;  Col.  Hartranft  was  a  great  deal  on  the 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  533 

street,  and  as  those  "  stay  behinds "  spied  "  Old 
Johnny,''  they  would  slip  like  a  flash  into  a  store,  no 
matter  whose  or  what  kind,  and  there  watch  until 
Col.  Hartranft  would  be  out  of  sight ;  but  sometimes 
when  they  could  not  elude  him  quick  enough,  they 
would  ''face  the  music  "  with  deliberate  effrontery, 
saluting  him  according  to  army  regulations  and  in 
the  civilian  style  of  "  Good  morning,  Colonel,"  or, 
"  How  are  you,  Colonel  ?"  The  colonel  rarely 
deigned  a  reply  to  the  compliment  paid  him,  but 
putting  on  a  withering  frown,  would  ask,  "  What  are 
you  doing  in  Norristown ?"  or  "Don't  you  know 
your  regiment  has  left  ?"  to  which  the  truant  soldier 
would  reply,  "  Col.  Schall  said  I  might  stay  till  to 
morrow,"  when,  perhaps,  Col.  Schall  knew  nothing 
about  it,  and  Col.  Hartranft  knew  perfectly  well 
that  the  men  were  lying  to  him  1 

A  few  deaths  from  sickness  occurred  in  the  regi 
ment  while  home  on  furlough,  among  whom  were 
Barney  O'Donnell  of  Co.  D,  and  Dennis  Buggy  of 
Co.  I. 

The  regiment  stayed  in  Harrisburg  until  eight 
o'clock  Sunday  morning,  the  20th  of  March,  when  it 
marched  across  the  Susquehanna  river,  on  the  old 
covered  bridge,  to  the  opposite  side,  to  Harrisburg, 
where  cars  of  the  Northern  Central  Eailroad  were  in 
waiting  to  take  it  on  to  Baltimore.  There  were  no 
less  than  nine  wagon  loads  of  officers',  camp,  and 
garrison  baggage  to  be  transported,  consequently  a 
large  detail  was  made  to  load  the  wagons  at  Camp 
Curtin,  to  unload  them  at  the  cars,  and  then  again 
to  load  it  into  the  cars ;  all  had  to  be  carried  from 
the  wagons  to  the  cars,  as  the  teams  could  not  get 
near  them. 


534     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

A  few  days  before  the  regiment  left  Camp  Curtin, 
about  twenty  of  the  men  took  what  they  called  a 
"  French  furlough,"  and  went  home  again  to  see  their 
families,  without  acknowledged  authority.  Among 
them  was  a  number  of  sergeants  and  corporals. 
Lieut.-Col.  Schall  felt  very  much  incensed  at  them 
for  doing  so,  and  fully  determined  to  punish  them 
on  their  return ;  the  non-commissioned  officers  were 
to  be  reduced  to  the  ranks,  and  the  privates  to  be 
court-martialed.  What  made  matters  worse,  was  a 
bill  presented  to  Col.  Schall,  by  the  Reading  Rail 
road  Company  for  fifty-eight  dollars,  to  indemnify 
the  company  for  the  damage  done  to  their  splendid 
passenger  cars,  by  some  of  the  drunken  men  of  his 
regiment,  in  their  transit  from  Bridgeport  to  Harris- 
burg,  on  the  9th  inst.;  which  bill  Lieut.-Col.  Schall 
presented  to  the  men  for  them  to  pay,  but  as  no  one 
had  had  &  hand  in  the  injuring  of  the  cars,  it  was 
found  impossible  to  collect  it,  Lieut.-Col.  Schall  paid 
the  bill  himself,  sooner  than  let  it  be  apportioned  to 
each  man  of  the  regiment,  whether  guilty  or  not, 
and  have  it  deducted  from  the  pay  rolls  on  the  next 
pay  day.  When  a  part  of  the  men,  who  had  a  hand 
in  the  outrage,  learned  that  Lieut.-Col.  Schall  had 
settled  the  bill  by  his  own  private  means,  they  were 
willing  to  reimburse  him,  but  he  declined  to  accept 
it.  The  other  part  of  those  men  turned  out  to  be  a 
portion  of  that  number,  who  absented  themselves 
without  leave.  This  determined  the  Lieut.-Col.  to 
make  an  example  of  them;  but  as  the  time  wore  on 
the  thing  was  finally  dismissed  from  his  mind,  and 
the  men  were  let  off  with  only  a  slight  reprimand ! 

At  half-past  ten  o'clock  on  Sunday  morning,  the 
20th  inst.,  the   men  and  baggage  being  loaded,  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      535 

cars  started  for  Baltimore,  where  they  arrived  at 
four  o'clock  P.  M.  On  arriving  at  Baltimore,  it  was 
found  that  no  preparations  had  been  made  there  for 
the  transportation  to  Annapolis,  the  place  of  general 
rendezvous  of  the  9th  Army  Corps,  in  consequence 
the  51st  had  to  sleep  in  the  cars  which  had  brought 
them  to  that  city. 

On  Monday  morning,  the  21st,  at  seven  o'clock, 
wagons  were  obtained,  and  the  baggage  was  un 
loaded  and  taken  to  the  Boston  steamer's  wharf, 
where  it  was  put  on  board  of  the  steamer  Georgiana; 
the  regiment  had  already  embarked  at  eleven  o'clock 
A.  M.  for  Annapolis,  Md.,  where  it  arrived  the  same 
day  at  two  P.  M.  It  disembarked,  fell  in  line  and 
marched  out  to  the  barracks  at  Camp  Parole,  about 
two  and  a  half  miles  from  the  city,  and  close  to  the 
railroad,  on  the  identical  spot  where  it  had  formed 
Camp  Union  in  1861-62. 

While  lying  here  a  few  new  recruits  arrived  for 
the  regiment. 

The  51st  occupied  the  barracks  at  Camp  Parole 
until  Wednesday  noon  of  the  23d  inst.,  when  it 
moved  a  few  yards  nearer  the  city,  and  went  into 
quarters  with  tents  on  what  used  to  be  the  old  Camp 
Union  parade  and  drill-ground ;  but  how  different 
everything  looked  to  what  it  did  then.  The  old, 
well-known  faces  of  the  Camp  Union  comrades  were 
missed,  and  their  places  filled  by  new  ones;  the 
beautiful  evergreens  that  hung  in  profuse  festoons 
around  the  old  camp,  where  are  they  now  ?  Alas  j 
they,  too,  have  passed  away,  along  with  those  brave 
hearts  that  made  this  familiar  spot  a  scene  of  mirth 
and  happiness.  Where  was  that  Norristown  Band 
that  used  to  assemble  around  the  flag-staff  of  a  Sab- 


536     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

bath  morn,  and  discourse  its  solemn  and  melancholy 
music  to  invite  the  regiment  up  to  the  Chaplain's 
tent,  where  they  might  be  taught  in  earnest  strains 
how  to  prepare  themselves  to  meet  the  change  of 
spheres  which  many  so  very  soon  made  after  leaving 
that  cherished  spot  in  1862 ! 

The  following  is  an  extract  from  a  private  letter 
that  appeared  in  one  of  the  Norristown  papers,  and 
is  supposed  to  have  been  written  by  Lieut.-Col. 
Edwin  Schall: 

"LETTER  FROM  ANNAPOLIS. — We  make  the  following  ex 
tract  from  a  private  letter,  lately  received  : 

"Time  worketh  great  changes.  This  is  evidenced  in  our 
everyday  life,  and  most  strikingly  in  our  history  as  a  regiment. 
Two  years  and  more  we  were  encamped  on  the  same  identical 
ground,  with  full  ranks,  and  under  the  same  chieftains.  Little 
then  did  we  dream  that  once  again  we  would  camp  upon  these 
plains,  and  prepare  for  another  expedition  of  a  like  character. 
How  many  of  those  who  were  then  with  us  are  here  now. 
When  we  look  over  our  depleted  ranks,  sad,  indeed,  are  the 
thoughts  that  suggest  themselves.  Many,  very  many,  who 
then  were  the  ga}rest  among  the  ga}7",  the  healthiest  among  the 
healthy,  are  now  sleeping  their  last  sleep.  How  painfully  are 
we  reminded  of  the  truth  that  we  are  all  passing  away,  by  the 
absence  of  those  familiar  faces  we  were  so  wont  to  look  upon. 
Of  the  field  and  staff,  there  remains  only  with  the  regiment 
Lieut.-Col.  (then  Major)  Edwin  Schall;  Col.  Hartranft  being 
in  command  of  the  depot  of  the  corps.  Of  the  original  line 
officers,  there  are  only  ten  left  out  of  thirty,  viz.  :  Maj.  Bolton, 
Capt.  Bisbing,  Capt,  Bolton,  Capt.  Allebough,  Capt.  Nicholas, 
Capt.  Hart,  Capt.  Shorkley,  Lieut.  Geo.  Schall,  Lieut.  Lynch, 
Lieut.  Foster. 

"Lieut.  Col.  Bell,  Capt.  Bell,  Lieut.  Hunsicker,  Lieut.  F;iir, 
Lieut.  Beaver,  fell  on  the  field  of  battle ;  and  Capt.  Schall, 
Capt.  Pechin,  Capt.  Snyder,  Capt.  Blair,  Capt.  Titus,  Capt. 
Taylor,  Capt.  Linn,  Capt.  Gaulin,  Capt.  Ilasscnplug,  Capt. 
Hallman,  Lieut.  Burrell,  Lieut.  Swallow,  Lieut.  Morris,  Lieut. 
Reed,  Lieut.  Campbell,  Lieut.  Kelly,  Lieut.  Linn,  Lieut.  Beale, 
have  either  resigned  or  been  transferred  into  the  Invalid  Corps, 
or  promoted. 

"Of  the  nine  hundred  men  then  here,  there  are  about  three 
hundred  and  fifty  left.  Many  have  gone  to  their  long  homes, 
others  have  been  discharged  on  account  of  disability.  It  is  a 
sad  thought,  that  the  many  who  to-day  are  in  the  full  bloom 
of  health,  will  in  a  short  time  be  cut  down,  never  to  rise  in 
life  again.  The  season  for  .an  active  campaign  is  here,  and 
very  naturally  the  corps  will  have  its  portion  to  do,  and,  let  me 
add,  it  will  be  no  mean  portion." 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      537 

On  Saturday,  the  26th  inst.,  the  regiment  again 
struck  tents,  and  moving  to  the  other  side  of  the 
railroad,  on  a  more  elevated  piece  of  ground,  went 
into  quarters  here.  This  was  called  Camp  Bell,  in 
honor  and  memory  of  our  lamented  Lieut. -Col.  Thos. 
S.  Bell,  who  was  killed  at  Antietam,  in  1862. 

Col.  Hartranft  was  in  command  of  the  depot  of 
the  9ih  Army  Corps,  having  his  quarters  in  the 
Naval  School  buildings  near  the  wharf.  Lieut.-Col. 
Schall  was  now  busily  drilling  his  regiment,  as  his 
ranks  were  getting  well  filled  up  by  the  almost 
daily  arrival  of  new  recruits,  and  the  arrival  of  the 
non  re-enlisting  men,  who  had  been  transferred  to 
the  llth  New  Hampshire,  at  Blain's  Cross-roads, 
East  Tennessee,  the  day  before  the  veteran  organi 
zation  left  to  go  home,  and  were  now  again  trans 
ferred  back  to  their  respective  companies.  The 
whole  of  the  time  now,  until  the  regiment  left  An 
napolis,  was  occupied  in  drilling,  both  facings  and 
manual  of  arms.  First,  squad  drill  for  an  hour  in 
the  morning,  then  company  drill  for  two  hours  ; 
company  or  regimental  drill  in  the  afternoon,  and, 
towards  sundown,  dress  parade.  On  pleasant  after 
noons  an  hour  or  so  would  be  devoted  to  a  game  of 
base  ball.  The  following  is  the  correspondence  of 
the  National  Defender  : 

CAMP  BELL,  51  ST  P.  V.  V. 
ANNAPOLIS,  MD.,  April  14^,  1804. 

Generals  Grant  and  Burnside  paid  this  Department  a  visit 
yesterday,  and  reviewed  all  the  regiments  that  are  herein  their 
respective  camps.  They  came  upon  us  rather  unexpectedly, 
as  their  visit  had  not  been  heralded,  like  such  events  used  to  be 
when  we  were  here  before  ;  but,  notwithstanding  their  sudden 
appearance  among  us,  they  found  a  highly  respectable  recep 
tion,  one  worthy  of  the  two  greatest  heroes  of  the  day,  and  of  the 

24 


538     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

veteran  9tli  Army  Corps.  General  Grant  arrived  evening  be 
fore  last.  Gen.  Burnsicle  arrived  yesterday  morning  at  6 
o'clock.  He  (Gen.  B.)  paid  us  a  "flying"  visit  last  Saturday, 
and  as  he  passed  each  camp,  on  either  side  of  the  road,  the 
vociferous  cheering  gave  unmistakable  evidence  of  his  great 
popularity. 

The  appearance  of  the  camps  is  truly  magnificent.  The 
camps  are  laid  out  with  military  precision,  and  each  street,  the 
line  officers'  marquees,  and  the  field  and  staff  officers'  quarters, 
are  gaily  and  gorgeously  bedecked  with  various  kinds  of  ever 
greens,  and  the  grounds  laid  out  in  ornamental  gardening 
style,  such  as  rightangles,  triangles,  and  in  every  conceivable 
angle,  each  with  very  tasty  centre  pieces,  making  the  camps 
wear  the  appearance  of  being  inhabited  with  "fairies."  A 
rumor  is  rife  here  just  at  present  to  the  effect  that  the  two  regi 
ments  of  the  2Gth  and  29th  United  States  (colored)  troops 
which  left  here  last  week  for  Hilton  Head,  S.  C. ,  were  both 
lost  last  Saturday  night  off  Cape  Hatteras,  during  the  terrible 
storm  then  prevailing.  It  is  hoped  that  the  rumor  may  turn 
out  to  be  merely  supposition,  for,  although  their  skin  is  black, 
they  no  doubt  would  have  carried  a  name  worthy  of  the  fame 
of  U.  S.  soldiers.  The  Rev.  D.  G.  Mallery  joined  the  regi 
ment  one  day  last  week.  He  was  received  with  much  pleasure 
by-those  with  whom  he  shared  the  toils  and  dangers  in  days 
gone  by.  Divine  worship  was  held  in  camp  last  Sabbath  after 
noon  for  the  first  time.  We  are  happy  to  find  that  his  voice  is 
improving,  and  hope  soon  to  be  able  to  inform  you  that  he  has 
entirely  recovered  it.  Lieut.  S.  P.  Stephens,  Q.  M.,  having  been 
despatched  on  Monday  last  to  Washington,  D.  C.,  per  order  of 
Gen.  Burnside,  to  draw  ordnance  and  ordnance  stores  for  the  use 
of  the  regiment,  returned  last  evening,  having  accomplished  his 
mission.  The  arms  will  arrive  to-day.  They  will  be  issued  to 
the  recruits,  and  then  will  begin  the  drilling  of  the  "  manual," 
which  they  have  been  so  anxiously  waiting  for.  Your  humble 
servant  thinks  their  anxiety  will  soon  be  set  at  rest.  New  re 
cruits  are  daily  arriving,  and  all  the  old  members  left  in  East 
Tennessee,  wTho  did  not  re-enlist,  have  arrived  here  with  the 
llth  New  Hampshire,  to  which  regiment  they  had  been  as 
signed,  while  we  were  home  enjoying  our  "good  old  thirty 
days."  They  have  not  yet  been  transferred  to  this  regiment, 
but  will  be  in  a  day  or  two  and  then  our  ranks  will  number  at 
least  nine  hundred  men.  Lieut. -Col.  Schall  is  in  attendance, 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  539 

personally,  drilling  the  regiment  and  by  his  urbanity  hns  suc 
ceeded  in  gaining  the  affections  of  the  men,  by  which  they  pay 
especial  attention  to  their  drilling  and  have  thereby  made 
themselves  proficient  in  the  " lacings."  The  health  of  the 
regiment  is  about  the  same  as  when  I  last  wrote — chills  and 
fever  predominant.  The  weather  here  is  a  little  like  a  human 
being's  life,  composed  of  smiles  and  tears,  only  we  have  the 
tears  two-thirds  of  the  time.  The  roads,  in  consequence,  are 
hub-deep  in  mud. 

Our  destination  is  not  publicly  known,  but  it  is  generally 
supposed  to  be  North  Carolina.  The  expedition  will  leave 
some  time  early  in  May.  The  corps  has  not  been  mapped  out 
yet,  but  I  am  informed  that  the  same  regiments  will  be  as 
signed  to  the  same  brigades  and  divisions  they  were  formerly  in. 
There  are  a  great  many  regiments  of  other  commands  to  be 
added  to  the  9th  Corps.  We  have  the  1st  Michigan  regiment 
with  us.  It  is  chiefly  composed  of  Chippewa  Indians,  and  they 
make  a  fine  military  appearance. 

41  Them  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars"  of  the  local 
bounty  has  been  looked  for  by  the  borough  accredited  ones 
with  intense  anxiet}-,  but  with  no  success.  The  question  is, 
Will  it  be  forwarded  to  them  here,  or  withheld  until  the  return 
home  of  the  regiment  ?  Base  ball  is  enjoyed  by  a  large  num 
ber  of  officers  and  men  every  afternoon,  when  the  weather  per 
mits,  and,  I  assure  you,  some  very  creditable  playing  is  done 
— some  that  would  do  honor  to  any  base  ball  club  extant. 

More  anon,  T.  H.  P. 

An  order  was  read  on  dress  parade  detailing  one 
commissioned  officer  and  four  men  from  the  51st 
P.  V.  V.,  to  proceed  North  for  recruiting  purposes. 

On  the  12th  of  April,  Gen.  U.  S.  Grant  visited  the 
9th  Army  Corps,  and  on  the  next  day  Gen.  Burn- 
side  arrived.  They  reviewed  the  9th  Corps,  and 
then  visited  the  various  camps;  afterwards  both 
returned  to  Washington,  I).  C.  Below  will  be  found 
further  correspondence  of  the  National  Defender: 

CAMP  BELL,  ANNAPOLIS,  MD. 

April  2(M,  1864. 

NOT  So. — In  yours  of  the  12th  inst.,  the  regiment  was  very 
much  surprised  to  read  of  the  death  of  Judson  Calleuder,  who 


5iO     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY  FIRST    REGIMENT 

is  at  present  alive  and  well.  How  such  a  report  reached  your 
borough,  perhaps  you  c;m  better  tell  than  I,  but  as  several 
have  intimated  that  it  was  your  "  humble  correspondent," 
I  will  distinctly  state,  the  first  I  knew  or  heard  of  the 
event,  was  on  the  evening  following  the  issue  of  our  paper, 
after  the  arrival  of  the  evening  mail,  but  as  he  is  entirel}r  re 
covered  from  his  late  severe  indisposition,  he  no  doubt  took 
means  to  acquaint  his  friends  that  if  he  was  ':  dead,"  he  couldn't 
see  it. 

[We  were  glad  to  learn  that  such  rumors  never  come  from 
our  correspondent.  ED.  ] 

Capt  J.  Merrill  Linn,  of  Company  H,  tendered  his  resig 
nation  last  week,  which  was  accepted  ;  pressure  of  business  of  a 
private  character  was  the  cause. 

Sergt.  John  W.  Fair,  of  Company  C,  returned  to  the  regiment 
on  last  evening  a  week  ago,  from  home,  whither  he  had  been 
to  make  application  for  admission  to  the  Philadelphia  Military 
School.  He  will  return  on  the  22d  inst.,  for  the  purpose  of 
perfecting  himself  in  the  various  "field  movements"  prepara 
tory  to  applying  for  a  commission  in  a  colored  regiment.  As  he 
lias  had  considerable  practical  experience  in  such  matters,  there 
can  be  but  little  doubt  in  the  minds  of  his  friends,  but  that  he 
will  pass  the  ordeal  of  the  "examining  board  "  with  eclat.  He 
h?is  proven  himself  a  good  soldier  on  more  than  one  occasion, 
and  takes  with  him  on  his  departure  the  good  wishes  of  his  old 
companions  in  arms.  Shad  and  other  fish  have  come  down  in 
price  sufficiently  low  that  the  boys  can  enjoy  a  "  feed  "  of  them 
without  producing  "Sweeny"  in  their  pocket  wallets.  The 
quantity  of  expressage  that  arrives  daily  for  the  regiment  is 
truly  a  matter  of  surprise  and  is  daily  on  the  increase.  Boxes 
of  every  conceivable  size  arrive  and  are  distributed  to  the 
anxious  expectants.  An  old  mail  composed  of  letters  and 
wrappers  which  had  been  forwarded  to  Knoxville,  Tenn.,  in 
January,  arrived  here  last  week,  and  as  we  perused  them 
they  brought  vividly  to  our  minds  our  very  "straightened  cir 
cumstances"  at  that  time.  The  rumor  of  the  loss  of  the  26th 
and  29th  IT.  S.  colored  regiments,  that  I  mentioned  in  my  last 
letter,  is  without  any  foundation  whatever.  Transportation  for 
the  incidental  uses  of  the  regiment,  which  has  been  a  source  of 
annoyance  to  obtain  for  some  time  past,  is  now  liberally  granted. 
Teams  and  cars  can  be  got  now  with  very  little  difficulty,  and 
our  daily  rations  of  quartermaster  and  commissary  stores  are 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  541 

landed  at  our  "  doors  "  just  when  and  as  we  want  them.  Several 
colored  regiments  have  arrived  here  within  a  few  days,  among 
which  was  the  43d  U.  S.  from  Camp  Wm.  Penn,  and  as  they 
marched  past  our  camp,  a  large  number  were  recognized  by 
our  boys  as  some  of  "  Norristown's  sable  sons."  New  arms 
and  equipments  were  issued  this  week  to  the  recruits  of  our 
regiment.  Our  new  comrades  take  to  them  "  mightily."  They 
have  had  but  three  days'  practice  in  the  manual  of  arms  and 
have  made  rapid  strides  in  the  acquirements  of  that  "pretty 
part  of  soldiering. "  Lieut.  Col.  Schall  has  been  detached  from 
his  command  for  a  few  days,  being  detailed  on  a  court-martial 
that  is  now  in  session  at  this  place.  Our  sutlers,  Messrs.  Whitney 
and  Myers,  arrived  here  last  evening,  and  to-day  their  stock  of 
goods  and  tents  arrived.  They  have  already  pitched  their  tents 
and  are  making  every  preparation  to  open  "  shop"  to-morrow 
morning  ;  they  have  not  come  any  too  soon.  As  they  are  both 
business  men  and  undoubtedly  accommodating,  they  will  reap 
a  rich  harvest  from  an  appreciating  soldiery  ;  they  merit  a  liberal 
patronage.  The  health  of  the  regiment  is  about  as  usual,  with 
no  abatement  in  the  chills  and  fever  cases.  Orders  have  just 
came  in  to  be  ready  to  move  at  an  hour"1*  notice,  with  five  days' 
cooked  rations  ;  and  all  tents  to  be  turned  in,  in  exchange  for 
shelter  tents. 

More  anon,  T.  P.  II. 

The  time  for  the  regiment  to  strike  tents  and  go 
to  the  "front"  was  drawing  nigh  to  hand,  and  as  it 
was  understood  that  the  men  could  draw  pay  for 
rations  during  their  thirty  days  at  home  on  veteran 
furlough,  the  application  was  made  and  the  money 
paid  in  full,  on  the  21st  of  April. 

On  the  21st  orders  were  received  to  turn  in  all 
tents  and  quartermaster's  stores,  and  prepare  to 
leave  Annapolis.  Three  days'  rations  were  issued 
and  cooked  that  night. 


542      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 


CHAPTER    III. 

Across  the  Potomac— On  the  Rapiclan — Battle  of  the  Wilder 
ness —  The  woods  on  fire  —  Chancellors ville  —  Battle  of 
Spottsylvania — Charge  and  repulse  of  the  3d  Division — 
Terrible  losses  in  the  51st — Bravery  of  Capt.  Bisbing — 
Capture  of  Capt.  Allebaugh  and  the  colors — Promotion  of 
Genl.  Hartranft — Another  day  of  carnage  —  Truce  of  the 
pickets — Retreat  of  the  enemy — Nearing  Richmond — Battle 
of  Cold  Harbor— Death  of  Col.  Schall  and  Lieut.  Fizone. 

ON  Saturday,  the  23d,  the  51st  P.  Y.  Y.  left  at  8 
A.  M.;  and  marched  to  Alexandria,  Ya.,  passing- 
through  Washington,  crossing  the  Potomac  on  the 
Long  Bridge,  and  arriving  at  the  outskirts  of  Alex 
andria  on  the  26th. 

The  baggage  had  been  put  on  board  of  a  steamer 
at  Annapolis,  which  sailed  at  noon  of  the  23d,  and 
arrived  at  Alexandria  at  3  -p.  M.  on  Sunday,  the 
24th,  where  it  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  regiment. 

The  corps  was  now  fully  organized,  and  the  51st 
P.  Y.  Y.  was  identified  with  the  First  Brigade,  Third 
Division,  Ninth  Army  Corps. 

While  the  regiment  was  at  Alexandria  it  learned 
of  the  death  of  one  of  its  most  promising  members. 
Below  will  be  found  an  editorial  obituary,  which  is 
correct  in  all  it  says,  except  in  the  date  of  the  de 
parture  of  the  regiment  from  Norristown. 

"Six  WEEKS.— On  the  10th  of  March  the  51st  regiment  left 
Norristown,  in  a  scene  of  military  glory,  with  thousands  of  our 
citizens  joining  in  the  brilliant  pageant.  In  one  of  the  com 
panies  was  a  young  lad  of  eighteen  summers,  who  had  been 
out  on  two  occasions  for  the  defence  of  the  State,  and  sustained 
himself  with  approval  to  all  his  associates.  By  a  course  of 
studies  he  had  prepared  himself  as  an  engineer,  and  having 
presented  himself,  was  accepted  so  far  as  mental  and  practical 
qualifications  were  concerned,  for  third  assistant  engineer  in 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      543 

the  naval  service  ;  but  the  standard  of  age  prevented  his  ap 
pointment  for  at  least  another  year  ;  to  put  in  this  year  actively, 
patriotically,  he  enlisted.  Amid  the  good  wishes  that  went 
with  the  regiment,  he  left  his  home.  All  went  well,  hopefully 
gaining  in  health  and  strength,  until  the  fatal  typhoid  attacked 
him,  soon  turning  to  congestion  of  the  brain — he  lingered  for 
four  days,  and  on  the  21st  died!  On  Saturday  last  his  cold 
corpse  was  brought  back  to  his  home  !  All  the  ambitious  pro 
ject  of  life  extinguished  in  six  weeks.  Such  was  the  career  of 
WASHINGTON  IRVING  GRIFFITH.  O,  what  is  life  !  Alas  !  alas, 
there  are  hundreds  of  cases,  similar  in  many  respects  to  this, 
occurring  in  such  times.  The  dreams,  prospects,  and  ambition, 
of  life  all  cut  short — in  a  few  days." 

On  Wednesday,  April  27th,  at  sunrise,  the  regi 
ment  left  camp,  marched  through  Alexandria  to 
about  one  mile  beyond  Fairfax  Court-house,  and 
encamped  near  midnight,  having  marched  about 
eighteen  miles  that  day. 

On  the  28th  the  regiment  again  left  and  marched 
to  Bristow's  Station,  on  the  Orange  and  Alexandria 
Railroad,  and  encamped  at  sundown,  making  eigh 
teen  miles  that  day. 

The  next  day  (29th)  it  left  Bristow's  and  marched 
to  Warrenton  Junction,  and  camped  at  5  P.  M.,  having 
marched  that  day  fifteen  miles.  Here  the  regiment 
lay  for  a  few  days  and  went  out  on  a  "reconnoitre" 
to  Warrenton  on  the  2d  of  May,  leaving  camp  very 
early,  and  not  finding  any  foe  returned  late  the  same 
night  to  the  Junction. 

While  here  a  sudden  death  occurred  that  surprised 
all.  George  Bodey,  of  Co.  A,  was  up  early  and  at 
tended  to  Lieut.-Col.  Schall's  horse  "  Bobby,"  clean 
ing  and  feeding  him  previous  to  saddling  him  for 
the  reconnoissance.  After  the  regiment  started, 
George  prepared  and  ate  a  hearty  breakfast  about 
seven  o'clock,  and  was  in  the  best  of  health  and 
spirits,  more  so  than  usual,  when  suddenly  he  was 
taken  sick  in  camp,  and  by  noon  was  a  corpse.  He 


544     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

was  well  known  throughout  the  whole  corps  for  his 
giant-like  proportions. 

On  Wednesday,  the  4th  of  May,  the  regiment 
started  again  on  the  march,  from  which  it  had  no 
rest  until  the  surrender  of  Lee  and  his  followers.  It 
left  for  Rappahannock  Station,  where  it  arrived 
before  night  and  posted  its  pickets.  On  the  5th  it 
was  aroused  at  4  A.  M.,  got  a  hasty  breakfast,  left  the 
station  at  5  A.  M.,  and  arrived  at  Gerrnania  ford,  on 
the  Eapidan  river,  at  11  o'clock  A.  M.  After  cross 
ing  the  river  on  pontoons  it  went  immediately  to 
the  front.  Arriving  in  front  of  the  enemy  it  was 
sent  off  to  the  right  of  the  line,  and  went  on  picket, 
where  it  remained  until  4  o'clock  of  the  next  morn 
ing,  when  it  came  in  and  took  up  a  position  in  the 
front.  At  eight  A.  M.  it  was  in  battle  with  a  desperate 
foe,  in  a  perfect  wilderness,  where  daylight  had  to 
struggle  to  penetrate  the  dense  foliage.  Towards 
noon  the  enemy's  fire  slackened  a  trifle ;  they  were 
evidently  getting  terribly  punished.  The  51st  ad 
vanced  a  short  distance,  but  were  driven  back  ;  then 
in  turn  the  enemy  was  forced  back,  and  thus  it  was 
until  7  o'clock  p.  M.  on  Friday,  the  6th  of  May,  on 
which  was  fought  "  the  battle,"  as  it  is  properly 
called,  "of  the  Wilderness."  The  loss  in  the  51st 
of  killed,  wounded  and  missing  was  not  definitely 
known,  but  it  was  about  ninety  in  all.  Killed, 
twenty-five;  wounded,  fifty ;  and  missing,  fifteen. 

*  The  following  list  is  the  best  that  could  be  obtained  : 

Co.  A.— Killed— Lieut.  John  S.  Moore.  Wounded— Thos. 
J.  Bolfon,  Clias.  Fix,  Daniel  Hood,  Osman  Ortlip,  John  Bare, 
Theodore  H.  Gilbert,  Samuel  Himes,  Amandus  Gargas. 

Co.  B.— Killed— Edward  Bullman,  Philip  Bond.  Wounded 
— George  Paul.  Captured — Henry  Mixell. 

Co.  C. — Killed — Color-sergeant  Patrick  Kevin.  Wounded — 
Abraham  Techier. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  545 

The  regiment  was  relieved  about  7  P.  M.,  and  went 
to  the  rear  a  short  distance,  and  had  a  good  night's 
rest. 

On  the  next  morning,  the  7th,  the  regiment  at  4 
o'clock  was  again  preparing  a  hasty  cup  of  coffee, 
when  orders  came  to  erect  a  kind  of  breastwork,  or 
rather  barricades,  which  orders  were  promptly  com 
plied  with.  But  they  were  scarcely  erected,  before 
an  order  was  given  to  change  positions.  The  firing 
from  the  enemy  was  now  becoming  more  rapid  and 
annoying;  a  new  position  was  now  taken;  another 
line  of  defences  thrown  up,  and  the  regiment  awaited 
on  their  arms  for  the  coming  storm  of  iron  and 
leaden  hail  to  burst,  in  all  its  fury,  on  their  devoted 
heads.  There  they  stood,  a  bulwark  to  their  coun 
try's  cause ;  but  the  storm  was  averted,  and  fell  on 
their  sister  corps  of  Gen.  Sedgewick,  who  had  a  fear 
ful  struggle  till  late  in  the  night.  Soon  after  mid 
night  the  51st  took  up  the  line  of  march  very  slowly 
towards  Chancellorsville,  and  at  1 J  A.  M.,  of  the  8th, 
it  was  fairly  underway,  but  had  to  leave  all  the 
wounded  behind.  The  woods  had  either  been  fired 
by  design  on  the  part  of  the  rebels,  or  by  accident 
from  the  paper  that  formed  the  cartridges ;  but,  be 
that  as  it  may,  hundreds  of  Union  soldiers,  both 


Co.  D.— Killed— David  H.  Yerkes,  William  II.  Showalter. 
Wounded — Noble  Creighton. 

Co.    E. — Killed — Levi    Ammons.      Wounded — John    Mill- 
house. 

Co.  F.— Wounded — Wm.  W.  Owens,  Howard  Bruce,  Fran 
cis  Adleman,  Thos.  G.  Aslitou,  Elwoocl  Charles,  Henry  White. 

Q0-  G — Killed — John  Elliott,  Aaron  Thatcher. 

Co.  II.— Killed— Frederick  Smith.    Wounded— H.  C.  McCor- 
mick,  Harrison  Bower,  John  E.  Leamon,  George  Vangeeser. 

Co.  I. — Killed — John  Murphy.     Wounded — Edward  Doyle. 

Co.  K. — Killed — Frederick  Scliwep.     Wounded — Theodore 
Odenwelder,  John  Fangford,  Alfred  Schilling. 

24* 


546     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

killed  and  wounded,  were  con>umed  in  the  fiery  ele 
ment,  their  whereabouts  and  their  identity  forever 
sealed  to  the  living.  Did  the  fire  get  a  start  by 
design,  that  one  act  of  barbarism  on  the  part  of  the 
rebels  should  have  been  adequate  to  have  kept  An 
drew  Johnson  so  sufficiently  loyal  as  to  carry  out 
his  policy,  that  "  treason  is  a  crime,  and  should  be 
made  odious."  The  regiment  reached  Hooker's 
battle-field  at  Chancellorsville  about  noon,  and 
rested  there  till  about  4  p.  M.,  when  it  slowly 
wended  its  way  about  one  mile  to  the  left  of  the 
ruins,  where  it  went  into  camp  for  the  night.  The 
day  had  been  intensely  hot,  and  the  dust  was  stifling 
to  a  painful  degree;  water  was  scarce  and  hard  to 
obtain. 

At  4  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  9th,  the  51st 
again  fell  in,  and  moved  off  towards  the  Fredericks- 
burg  plank  road.  The  dust  was  even  worse  than  it 
was  the  day  before,  and  the  heat  equally  as  great. 
The  enemy  was  here  met,  and  heavy  skirmishing 
ensued  between  the  51st  and  the  foe  for  several 
hours,  culminating  in  a  severe  battle,  in  which  the 
enemy  left  the  field,  and  the  51st  erected  another 
work  of  defence,  expecting  the  battle  would  be  re 
newed  ere  the  next  morning. 

On  the  morning  of  the  10th  the  20th  Michigan 
was  thrown  out  as  skirmishers,  and  the  51st  lay  in 
support  of  that  regiment  until  12  o'clock,  noon,  when 
it  moved  off  a  mile  to  the  right  of  the  corps,  with 
orders  to  erect  works  of  defence.  Trees  were  felled, 
and  a  strong  line  of  rifle  pits  was  erected,  it  having 
been  determined  to  hold  every  inch  of  ground 
gained.  It  was  a  pleasant  day,  and  the  regiment  in 
fine  spirits,  although  their  ranks  were  being  depleted 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  547 

rapidly.  As  the  regiment  finished  the  works,  orders 
were  received  for  an  advance.  Lieut.-Col.  Schall 
immediately  sent  out  a  strong  body  of  skirmishers, 
and  the  line  advanced  a  full  half  mile  directly  front ; 
then  making  a  full  left  wheel,  advanced  through  the 
woods  and  openings  another  full  mile.  The  skir 
mishing  at  times  was  severe,  the  regiment  had  lost 
eleven  in  killed  and  wounded,  having  been  sub 
jected  to  an  enfilading  fire  all  night,  besides  a  con 
stant  fire  in  front. 

On  the  llth,  which  was  rainy,  at  daylight,  the 
regiment  commenced  throwing  up  breastworks,  but, 
as  it  often  happened  before  and  afterwards,  just  as 
they  were  completed,  the  regiment  received  orders 
to  change  position,  and  fortify  itself  again  immedi 
ately,  which  works  were  completed  by  3  P.  M.  At 
4  P.  M.  orders  were  received  to  fall  back  to  the  other 
side  of  a  deep  hollow  or  ravine,  to  go  into  camp  and 
cook  rations;  but  before  any  fires  were  kindled, 
orders  were  again  received  to  advance,  which  was 
done.  We  advanced  about  a  mile,  then  "  about 
face,"  marched  back  and  went  into  camp  again  about 
10  o'clock  p.  M.,  in  a  drenching  rain.  It  must  be 
remembered  this  going  into  camp  was  merely  lying 
down  on  the  bare  ground,  for  the  tents  were  all  on 
the  wagon  train,  which  was  in  the  rear. 

On  the  next  day,  the  12th,  in  a  considerable  rain, 
the  ever  memorable  battle  of  Spottsylvania  was 
fought.  The  regiment  was  roused  up  from  a  sound 
sleep  at  2  A.  M.,  and  left  at  3  A.  M.,  and  crossed  the 
river  to  the  opposite  side,  where  it  encountered  the 
enemy  and  drove  them  before  it  like  scared  sheep  ; 
then  went  to  the  support  of  the  2d  division,  when  it 
was  again  ordered  to  take  up  a  position  to  the  left 


548     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY  FIRST   REGIMENT 

of  the  27th  Michigan.     In  front  of  this  situation  was 
a  high  crest  or  knoll  of  ground,  whereon  the  enemy 
had    a    battery  and  deep   rifle  pits.     Orders  were 
given  for  the  51st  to  charge  this  crest,  and  capture 
the  guns.    Six  companies  were  sent  out  as  skirmish 
ers,  and  the  regiment  was  advanced  to  make  the 
charge ;  but  before  the  charge  occurred,  the  order 
was  countermanded,  and  four  companies  were  sent 
to  the  support  of  Hancock,  who  was  being  pressed 
very  closely  by  the  enemy  on  their  left.     In  a  short 
time  the  four  companies  returned,  when  a  general 
charge  was  made  by  the  whole  of  the  3d  Division, 
9th  Army  Corps,  but  met  with  a  repulse  that  sent 
it  back  flying  to  its  starting  point.     In  this  charge 
the  loss  of  the  5 1st  was  terrible  in  killed,  wounded, 
and  prisoners,  with  two  stand  of  colors.     The  loss 
of  the  colors  chagrined  the  men  tenfold  more  than 
the  loss  of  their  comrades,  for  by  some  it  was  looked 
upon  as  a  most  damning  disgrace,  by  others  as  a  high 
mark  of  credit,  as  showing  that  the  regiment  had 
been  in  a  tight  place  ;  but  be  it  considered  a  disgrace 
by  whom  it  may,  that  does  not  make  it  one.    A  regi 
ment  charging  in   such  a  place  as  that  was,   with 
nearly  one-half  of  its  men  shot  down,  and  the  ene 
my   at   almost    hand   to   hand    encounter,   with   far 
greater  superiority  of  numbers,  it  seems  almost  a 
miracle  that  any  man  escaped  death  or  capture,  and 
those  of  the  51st  P.  V.  V.  should  be  proud  of  the 
loss  of  their   colors   under  the   circumstances  that 
caused  it.     Had  they  been  lost  through  treachery  or 
cowardice,  then  it  would  be  just  and  proper  to  con 
demn  the  deprivation.     Again,  had  the  State  con 
sidered  it  a  disgrace,  another  flag  would  never  have 
been  given  to  it.     And  again,  had  there  been  any 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEEKS.  549 

suspicion  on  the  part  of  the  higher  rank  of  officers, 
that  the  colors  were  disgracefully  lost,  a  commission 
would  have  been  detailed  to  investigate  it.  No! 
brave  men  of  the  51st,  you  were  not  disgraced  by 
your  loss. 

In  this  charge,  Capt.  Geo.  W.  Bisbing  received  a 
ball  through  his  wrist,  but  nothing  daunted  he  still 
pushed  on,  with  the  blood  streaming  from  his  wound, 
when  another  one  struck  him  in  the  left  side  of  his 
loins,  traversing  his  back,  passed  out  the  other  side, 
and  he  fell,  mortally  wounded.  Among  the  captured 
was  Capt.  Wm.  Allebaugh,  of  Co.  C,  who,  seeing  his 
colors  in  danger  of  capture,  resolved  to  save  them  or 
perish,  but  the  enemy  bearing  down  on  his  color- 
guards  in  such  overwhelming  numbers,  he  was  forced 
to  a  surrender  of  himself  and  colors.  After  being 
repulsed,  the  regiment  reformed  and  went  to  the 
front  again,  where  it  remained  all  night  under  arms, 
in  the  midst  of  a  heavy  rain. 

The  next  morning  (the  13th)  was  very  quiet 
along  the  whole  line — the  rain  still  coming  down. 
An  attack  from  the  rebels  was  momentarily  ex 
pected  ;  the  utmost  vigilance  was  exercised,  but  up 
to  5  P.  M.  it  was  quiet,  when  at  that  time  the  enemy 
made  a  demonstration  in  front  of  the  51st,  which  did 
not  amount  to  much.  During  this  day  an  attempt 
was  made  by  the  adjutant  of  the  regiment  to  figure 
up  its  losses.  The  sum  total  up  to  the  night  of  the 
8th  was,  in  killed,  wounded,  and  missing,  eighty- 
four  officers  and  men.  Among  the  killed  were  Lieut. 
John  S.  Moore,  of  Co.  A;  Color-Sergeant  Patrick 
McKeevin,  of  Co.  C ;  Private  David  Yerkes,  of  Co. 
D ;  and  Private  John  Murphy,  of  Co.  I.  Among 
the  wounded  was  Lieut.  Win.  W.  Owens,  of  Co.  ¥ ; 


550     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Sergt.  Howard  Bruce,  of  Co.  F ;  Sergt.  John  Mc- 
Gilligan,  and  Private  Noble  Creighton,  of  Co.  D ; 
and  as  far  as  the  adjutant  could  learn  correctly  from 
the  night  of  the  8th  up  to  the  night  of  the  12th,  the 
51st  had  sustained  a  loss  of  about  two  hundred. 
Among  the  wounded  were  Capt.  Geo.  W.  Bisbing, 
Co.  I ;  Sergt.  John  R.  Davis,  Co.  I,  captured ;  John 
George,  Francis  E.  Keating,  John  Stiver,  arid  ten 
more  of  Co.  I.  Among  the  prisoners  were  Capt. 
Wm.  Allebaugh,  Co.  C ;  Lieut.  Wm.  F.  Campbell, 
Co.  H.  The  enemy  were  heavily  in  force  in  the 
front  of  the  51st,  and  their  batteries  threw  shot  and 
shell  amongst  the  regiment  constantly.  Our  guns 
returned  a  few  shots  during  the  day.  In  the  after 
noon  our  artillery  massed  themselves  to  resist  any 
attack  the  enemy  should  attempt,  but  none  was 
made. 

The  next  day,  the  14th,  was  another  disagreeable 
day,  raining  nearly  all  the  time.  Heavy  and  rapid 
firing  began  on  the  left  and  continued  for  about  an 
hour,  when  orders  were  issued  for  a  general  advance 
along  the  whole  line,  but  from  some  prudent  cause, 
no  doubt,  it  did  not  take  place,  but  as  night  advanced 
it  was  feared  that  the  enemy  intended  an  attack  un 
der  cover  of  darkness,  but  the  night  passed  oft*  very 
quietly. 

The  15th  found  the  regiment  occupying  rifle  pits, 
and  as  the  enemy  to  the  right  commenced  a  vigor 
ous  shelling  about  noon,  the  regiment  dug  traverses 
for  a  protection  against  the  flying  shells.  It  was 
while  the  regiment  was  at  this  work  that  it  learned 
with  much  satisfaction  of  the  promotion  of  Col. 
Ilartranft  to  a  Brigadier-General,  a  promotion  he 
should  have  received,  if  justice  had  been  done  him, 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  551 

at  the  close  of  the  battle  of  Antietam.  The  enemy's 
works  were  close  to  ours  and  in  full  view,  with  their 
battle  flags  flying  defiantly  in  our  faces,  their  bands 
playing,  and  the  singing  of  good  old  Methodist 
hymns  were  plainly  heard.  In  the  evening  things 
were  quieted  down,  and  the  greatest  annoyance  now 
was  the  stench  arising  from  the  dead  bodies  that  lay 
between  the  two  lines  unburied,  for  neither  army 
could  bury  many  of  their  dead,  and  the  almost  con 
stant  rain,  with  a  hot  air,  soon  caused  the  bodies  to 
decompose  and  fill  the  atmosphere  with  a  most 
offensive  odor.* 

On  the  16th  the  enemy  still  in  front  kept  very 


*  The  following  is  but  a  partial  list  of  the  casualties  at  Spot- 
sylvauia  : 

Co.  A. — Killed — none.  Wounded — Jesse  Freas,  Jacob  H. 
Derr,  Thos.  F>4rrell,  Saml.  H.  Freas,  Charles  S.  Hansell,  Jesse 
Johnson,  Ephraim  Parvin,  Henry  Smith,  John  Baylor,  Jere 
miah  Gray,  Jonathan  B.  Ellis,  Edward  Hall  man,  Henry  Mc- 
Lain,  George  Smith,  Joseph  Supplee,  Chas.  Yunker.  Captured 
— Chas.  Yunker. 

Co.  B. — Killed — Harrison  Ackerman.  Wounded — George 
W.  Moser,  Edward  Hardy. 

Co.  C. — Killed — Lieut.  Thos.  J.  Lynch.  Wounded — Andrew 
J.  Grimm.  Onptured— Capt.  Win.  Allebaugh,  Hillary  Sloop. 
Philip  Stoffet,  Joshua  Kevin.  Missing — Michael  Dillon,  Ben 
jamin  Kooker. 

Co.  D. — Wounded — Harry  Forman,  Win.  H.  Body,  Daniel 
R.  Yost.  Captured — Jeremiah  Cassiday.  Missing — John  John 
son,  Jefferson  Clare. 

Co.  E. — Wounded — Jeremiah  Aikey,  Jacob  Boop,  Wm. 
Schnure.  Captured — Jeremiah  Aikey. 

Co.  F.— Killed— Robert  Lindsay.    Wounded— Wm.  Dreshcr. 

Co.  G.— Killed — Samuel  Moore.    Wounded — August  Rolley. 

Co.  H. — Captured — Lieut.  Wm.  F.  Campbell,  HughMcClure. 
D.  C.  Brown,  George  Breon,  Harrison  Hause,  D.  M.  Wetzell, 
Simon  Goss,  John  Hartz,  Wm.  J.  Lattimer,  Win.  A.  Miller, 
Jacob  Smith,  Isaiah  Smith. 

Co.  I. — Wounded — Capt.  George  W.  Bisbing,  John  R.  Davis, 
John  J.  Stiver.  Captured — John  R.  Davis,  Philip  Hattel, 
Abraham  Wampole. 

Co.  K.— Killed —Lieut.  Frank  B.  Sterner,  Charles  W. 
Willett.  Wounded— Franklin  S.  Moycr,  Jno.  Ranks.  Cap 
tured — Thos.  Arbuckle,  Absalom  Baldwin,  James  Ludwig. 


552      HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST    REGIMENT 

quiet,  and  our  artillery  opened  a  vigorous  cannon 
ading  on  them,  but  as  their  reply  was  rather  feeble, 
it  was  supposed  they  were  falling  back  from  our 
front.  Skirmishers  were  sent  out ;  the  right  of  the 
line  advanced  over  a  mile  ;  the  skirmishing  was  but 
trifling.  One  man  of  Co.  Gr  was  mortally  wounded. 
The  regiment  remained  out  all  night  in  the  picket 
pits.  Events  were  inactive.  The  bands  of  both 
armies  discoursed  "  most  excellent  music,"  and  were 
distinctly  Leard  by  the  contending  foes  while  on  the 
line  up  to  nine  or  ten  o'clock  at  night. 

On  the  17th  the  entire  supply  trains  were  ordered 
to  Fredericksburg,  where  a  great  part  had  been  for 
more  than  a  week.  The  wounded  also  had  all  been 
sent  there,  nearly  every  house  had  been  taken  pos 
session  of  by  the  surgeons  and  turned  into  hospitals 
for  the  wounded  and  dying.  Every  house  was 
crowded  to  its  fullest  capacity.  At  one  time  there 
were  not  less  than  60,000  wounded  men  there,  and 
the  Government  was  transporting  them  to  Washing 
ton  as  fast  as  its  means  afforded. 

A  kind  of  cemetery  outside  the  city,  was  formed 
and  long  pits  similar  to  rifle  pits  were  dug  about 
four  feet  deep,  seven  wide,  and  two  to  three  hun 
dred  long.  The  dead  were  laid  on  the  ground, 
wrapped  in  a  blanket  close  side  by  side  until  the 
pit  was  filled  with  bodies,  then  covered  over  with 
dirt,  with  a  board  at  the  head  of  each,  having  the 
man's  name,  company  and  regiment  on  it  as  a  finish 
to  the  work. 

Everything  remained  quiet  at  the  front  all  day. 
The  bands  of  both  lines  seemed  to  be  trying  to  out 
vie  each  other  in  the  strength  and  variety  of  their 
playing.  At  night  orders  were  received  to  prepare 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  553 

for  a  night's  march  at  short  notice,  but  the  regiment 
remained  in  its  pits,  as  the  command  to  "forward"  was 
not  issued,  but  the  next  morning,  the  18th,  the  plan 
for  the  day's  work  was  decided  on  and  the  order 
was  issued  as  follows :  The  2d  and  6th  Corps, 
with  the  2d  division  of  the  9th;  were  to  assail  the 
enemy  on  our  right,  and,  if  the  assault  should  prove 
successful,  the  1st  brigade  of  3d  division  was  to  ad 
vance  in  front  of  and  with  the  51st.  The  day  was 
beautiful,  excepting  a  little  too  warm.  Early  in  the 
morning  the  attack  was  made ;  the  cannonading  on 
both  sides  was  terrific;  the  shells  filled  the  air  with 
that  awful  shriek  that  was  enough  to  make  the 
stoutest  heart  quake;  the  roar  of  artillery  and  the 
continual  explosions  of  the  shells  were  truly  deafen 
ing  ;  the  enemy's  works  appeared  to  be  filled  with 
artillery,  and  all  their  batteries  must  have  been 
massed  in  anticipation  of  an  attack  from  Grant. 
Several  men  of  the  51st  were  badly  wounded  by  the 
premature  explosion  of  our  own  shells.  After  sev 
eral  hours  of  severe  fighting,  the  attack  being  a 
total  failure,  the  line  assumed  its  old  position  in  the 
pits,  and  our  artillery  all  moved  off  in  the  night, 
and  at  two  o'clock  of  the  morning  of  the  19th  orders 
were  received  by  the  51st  to  be  ready  to  move  off 
at  a  moment's  notice.  The  order  to  move  was  given 
at  four  o'clock.  The  regiment  left  and  the  entire 
works  were  abandoned.  The  51st  moved  to  the 
left  about  two  miles,  and  took  up  a  position  in  the 
rear  of  the  6th  Corps  about  noon.  In  the  evening 
the  regiment  again  changed  its  position  to  the  left 
of  the  1st  brigade,  and  occupied  the  second  line  of 
battle  close  to  the  95th  and  138th  Penna.  regiments. 
Here  the  51st  met  a  great  many  old  acquaintances 


554     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

in  the  two  regiments.  During  the  entire  evening 
the  cannonading  on  the  right  was  very  heavy.  In 
the  morning  the  regiment  moved  off  to  the  left.  It 
will  be  observed  that  it  was  noon  before  it  arrived 
at  its  new  position,  only  going  two  miles.  The  slow 
ness  of  this  progression  was  caused  by  having  to  cut 
their  way  through  a  perfect  wilderness ;  trees  had  to 
be  felled,  in  fact  a  regular  road  had  to  be  cut  and 
cleared,  before  it  could  reach  its  position.  On  the 
20th  of  May  the  front  line  of  battle  had  dug  them 
selves  pits,  and  throwing  up  a  substantial  line  of 
breastworks  the  51st  lay  in  support  of  those  in  the 
pits.  In  the  afternoon  the  skirmishers  advanced 
about  half  a  mile.  One  man  of  the  51st  was  fatally 
wounded  and  borne  to  the  rear,  then  sent  to  Fred- 
ericksburg. 

The  next  day,  the  21st,  Lieut.-Col.  Schall  was  de 
tailed  as  field-officer  of  the  day  of  the  brigade.  He 
went  on  duty  at  midnight,  and  Maj.  Wm.  J.  Bolton 
took  command  of  the  regiment.  At  3  A.  M.,  Maj. 
Bolton  with  the  entire  regiment  went  out  on  picket. 
Shortly  after  being  posted  the  men  of  the  51st  and 
the  pickets  of  the  enemy  began  a  friendly  conversa 
tion  which  ended  in  trading  tobacco,  coffee,  &c.,  but 
unknown  to  any  of  the  commanders  until  the  field- 
officer  of  the  day,  Lieut.-Col.  Schall,  discovered  and 
put  a  stop  to  it,  as  it  was  a  violation  of  the  articles 
of  war.  About  2  o'clock  p.  M.,  the  enemy  advanced 
towards  the  left  and  drove  in  our  skirmishers  and 
forced  the  51st  to  fall  back  to  the  main  line,  but 
Maj.  Bolton  rallied  it  again  and  advanced  it  to  its 
former  position  ;  while  the  6th  Corps  was  engaging 
the  enemy  in  a  severe  struggle,  in  which  the  latter 
fell  back.  After  that  it  became  quiet  all  along  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS. 

front  of  the  9th  Corps.  Shortly  after  midnight  and 
early  in  the  morning  of  the  22d,  a  rumbling  noise 
\vas  heard  within  the  enemy's  li  es  indicating  a  re 
moval  of  wagon  trains  and  artillery,  and  at  4  o'clock 
A.  M.,  the  regiment  again  started  off)  but  the  enemy 
had  fled.  It  made  a  march  this  time  of  eighteen 
miles  over  a  tract  of  country  which  appeared  as  if 
that  had  been  the  first  body  of  troops  that  passed 
over  it  ;  fences  and  buildings  were  in  good  repair 
and  the  soil  luxuriant  in  crops.  At  night  the  regi 
ment  camped  on  the  side  of  a  woods  near  a  small 
stream  that  emptied  into  the  North  Ann. 

On  the  23d,  the  regiment  left  its  camp  at  5  o'clock 
A.  M.  and  marched  till  noon,  when  it  fell  in  with  the 
2d  Corps,  forming  a  junction  a  short  distance  from 
the  North  Ann  river,  and  marched  till  dark.  The 
advance  had  met  the  enemy  and  entered  into  a  bat 
tle.  The  scene  of  action  was  reached  by  the  2d  and  9th 
Corps  at  dark.  The  51st  immediately  took  up  its 
position  and  began  to  entrench  itself.  It  was  evident 
that  Grant  was  now  nearing  Richmond,  for  all  through 
the  night  the  rebel  locomotive  whistles  could  be  con 
tinually  heard,  as  if  the  enemy  was  receiving  rein 
forcements  by  railroad.  The  regiment  labored 
•until  long  after  daylight  to  complete  their  works, 
which  were  made  very  strong,  i.  e.,  strong  enough 
to  resist  any  ordinary  shell  from  a  field-piece. 
Considerable  cannonading  all  day  in  front,  which 
began  to  be  very  heavy.  Towards  dark  a  heavy 
rain  having  set  in,  continued  the  greater  part  of  the 
night,  making  it  slippery  in  the  works  of  newly  dug 
earth.  The  1st  Division,  9th  Corps,  assaulted  the 
rebel  works,  but  were  repulsed  with  heavy  loss. 

A  few  minutes  after  th«  regiment  had  lain  down, 


556     IITSTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

fully  expecting  a  good  night's  sleep  in  their  new 
works,  orders  came  in  for  it  to  move  oil  to  the  left ; 
it  went  about  half  a  mile  and  sent  four  companies 
out  on  picket.  The  next  morning,  the  25th,  the 
four  companies  were  relieved  and  rejoined  the  regi 
ment.  The  pickets  while  out  had  a  lively  time  of 
it,  for  they  kept  up  a  constant  fire  all  night  with  the 
enemy.  Just  before  dark  both  armies  became  rest 
ive,  culminating  in  a  genuine  artillery  duel,  and 
the  capture  of  five  rebels  who  were  after  a  bullock 
that  had  got  between  the  two  lines.  Both  armies 
now  occupied  an  almost  limitless  pine  forest,  which 
furnished  splendid  material  for  breastworks,  to 
which  a  great  deal  was  appropriated.  A  new  line 
of  works  was  built  up  again  and  the  regiment  lay 
in  them  until  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day,  the 
26th,  when  one  hundred  and  fifty  men  of  the  regi 
ment  were  detailed  and  went  out  on  picket,  where 
they  learned  from  the  enemy  that  Lee  was  killed. 
This  put  our  men  in  good  spirits  and  seemed  to 
compensate  them  for  all  their  trials  of  the  past 
twenty-one  days  fighting,  but  like  all  camp  stories 
it  proved  to  be  untrue. 

Heavy  firing  of  musketry  and  artillery  was  heard 
on  the  left.  Orders  were  received  to  be  ready  to 
move  at  11  o'clock  that  night,  but  were  counter 
manded.  Heavy  musketry  firing  began  at  9J  o'clock, 
and  continued  for  about  one  hour,  when  all  became 
comparatively  quiet.  After  that  picket  firing  the 
enemy's  bands  could  be  distinctly  heard  in  front 
of  the  regiment  until  late  at  night,  when  orders  were 
again  issued  to  move  at  4  o'clock  the  next  morning, 
27th.  At  the  appointed  hour  the  regiment  formed 
and  moved  to  the  left  into  the  road,  where  it  re 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  557 

mained  until  11  o'clock  A.  M..  for  further  orders. 
It  afterwards  started  off  in  the  direction  of  the  North 
Ann  river,  to  which  place  the  enemy  had  fallen  back 
and  were  crossing  to  the  other  side.  Pickets  were 
sent  out  from  the  regiment  and  a  position  was  taken 
up,  but  it  was  again  moved  further  to  the  left.  The 
pickets  evidently  had  purposely  been  left  on  their 
post  with  the  view  of  keeping  the  enemy  ignorant 
of  a  flank  movement  that  our  troops  were  then 
making  on  his  extreme  right.  The  affair  succeeded 
admirably,  but  the  pickets  suffered  considerably,  as 
they  had  no  support ;  and  not  knowing  that  their 
army  had  entirely  left,  they  fought  their  adversaries 
•with  desperation,  losing  heavily.  The  regiment  lost 
twenty  six  in  killed,  wounded  and  missing,  besides 
twelve  that  were  known  to  be  captured.  The  enemy 
had  discovered  by  this  piece  of  strategy  on  the  part 
of  Gen.  Grant,  that  he  had  given  them  the  slip  and 
crossed  his  whole  army  over  the  Parnunky  river, 
not  far  from  Hanover  Junction.  There  they  met 
our  troops  and  desperately  fought  to  hold  them  in 
check,  but  this  was  only  a  "dodge"  of  Gen.  Grant 
to  give  them  another  go-by,  which  he  did  during 
the  night  and  following  day.*  The  next  morning, 
the  28th,  at  7  o'clock,  the  9th  Army  Corps  was  in 
motion,  with  the  51st  leading  the  advance.  At  12, 
noon,  the  column  halted  for  dinner  and  rest,  for  it 

*  The  following  is  a  list  of  the  casualties  at  North  Ann 
River: 

Co.  A. — Captured — Win.  Barr,  George  W.  Berks. 

Co.  C. — Captured — Andrew  J.  Bell. 

Co.  D. — Captured — Lemuel  Moode,  Andrew  Wherle,  Philip 
Warn  pole. 

Co.  E.— Captured— John  W.  Sheckler. 

Co.  H.—  Killed— Jno.  W.  Erdley.    Captured— David  Yordcr. 

Co.  I. — Captured — George  B.  Slough. 

Co.  K. — Captured— Alexander  Deibler,  Jas.  S.  Garrett. 


558     HISTORY    OF    TUB    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

had  marched  with  great  speed.  At  1  p.  M.  it  again 
started  on  a  forced  march  until  11  o'clock  that  night, 
having  made  nearly  thirty  miles  that  day.  The 
troops  were  literally  jaded  out,  and  it  was  beyond 
all  cavil  the  severest  march  of  the  whole  campaign. 

The  next  morning,  the  29th,  the  51st  got  orders 
to  leave  at  4  o'clock  A.  M.  It  only  went  about  three 
miles  and  was  ordered  to  throw  up  breastworks.  It 
was  supposed  that  here  was  to  be  taken  a  decided 
stand;  the  works  were  first  laid  out  with  great  care 
and  in  regular  order;  they  were  to  be  sufficiently 
strong  to  resist  artillery.  It  was  nearly  completed 
when  orders  were  issued  to  stop.  Eighty  men 
were  then  detailed  from  the  51st  to  go  out  with  a 
party  to  reconnoitre  the  enemy's  works,  which  were 
found  to  be  of  the  most  formidable  character.  About 
1  P.  M.  the  regiment  fell  back  a  little,  and  the  whole 
brigade  was  then  massed  in  anticipation  of  an  at 
tack.  Here  we  enjoyed  a  good  night's  rest. 

The  next  morning,  the  30th,  the  regiment,  as  per 
orders,  left  at  6  o'clock,  and  moved  a  distance  of 
five  miles — it  arrived  about  8  o'clock  that  night.  Its 
progress  was  very  slow,  as  it  had  to  fight  for  every 
foot  of  ground  over  which  it  marched.  It  was  now 
at  Cold  Harbor,  and  only  eight  miles  from  the 
objective  point,  Richmond.  We  immediately  took 
up  a  position  in  a  dense  pine  forest,  and  erected 
works  which  were  not  completed  till  after  mid 
night.  Skirmishers  now  advanced  and  the  enemy 
gradually  retired  to  the  outer  works  and  fortifi 
cations  surrounding  Richmond,  no  doubt  to  draw 
our  army  within  the  range  of  their  heavy  siege 
guns. 

About  10  A.  M.  of  the  81st,  the  regiment  was  or- 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  559 

dered  to  advance  on  the  enemy's  fortifications  in 
their  front,  distant  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile. 
The  line  was  formed,  and  it  advanced,  driving  the 
enemy's  skirmish  line  into  and  beyond  a  woods 
directly  in  front  of  their  works.  Still  following  the 
enemy  up,  they  moved  a  good  distance  into  the 
woods  and  began  to  fortify.  After  laying  out  the 
plans  and  commencing  entrenchments,  orders  were 
issued  to  stop.  The  regiment  then  formed  line  of 
battle  and  awaited  further  mandates,  which  soon 
came,  to  recommence  fortifying;  but  scarcely  was  it 
resumed  before  it  was  countermanded  again,  and  we 
were  ordered  to  advance,  which  we  did  about  four 
hundred  yards,  and  gained  a  good  position  on  the 
crest  of  a  hill,  where  we  laid  on  our  arms  all  night. 

Early  on  the  next  morning.  June  the  1st,  orders 
were  received  to  move  up  a  little  to  the  right  so  as 
to  connect  the  lines  with  the  1st  Division,  9th  Army 
Corps.  New  works  were  thrown  up  here,  which 
occupied  most  of  the  day.  When  completed,  the 
regiment  sent  out  a  skirmish  line 'to  the  front — 
when  the  enemy,  in  return,  advanced  their  main 
line  and  drove  in  our  skirmishers.  The  troops  on 
our  extreme  left  fell  back  without  firing  a  single 
shot,  but  the  left  of  the  3d  Division,  9th  Army 
Corps,  swung  around,  and,  pouring  volley  after 
volley  into  the  enemy,  drove  them  back  to  their 
own  works.  The  firing  from  both  lines  continued 
through  the  whole  night. 

The  next  day  the  regiment  again  advanced  to  the 
outskirts  of  the  woods  on  the  edge  of  the  crest  where 
they  had  erected  their  former  works.  Between  this 
edge  and  the  enemy's  entrenchments  was  an  ugly 
hollow,  or  ravine,  about  fifty  yards  wide.  IJcre  they 


560     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

had  felled  trees  in  all  directions,  and  made  further 
advances  an  utter  impossibility.  Their  works  and 
the  last  named  (that  is,  those  on  the  edge  of  the 
ravine),  of  the  51st,  were  about  one  hundred  and 
fifty  yards  apart.  Our  communication  with  the 
rear  was  now  cut  off,  as  the  51st  had  advanced  too 
close  to  the  enemy  to  allow  any  egress  but  retreat. 
So  it  remained  all  day  on  the  far  side  of  the  crest, 
and  built  a  regular  fort.  After  dark  set  in,  the  men 
dug  out  traverses  in  order  to  open  up  communica 
tions  with  those  occupying  the  main  line,  which  they 
accjmplished  before  daylight,  and  the  men  proudly 
boasted  of  having  two  homes  now  at  one  time,  which 
they  seemed  to  enjoy  by  spending  a  few  hours  on 
the  main  line,  and  then  returning  to  their  second 
home  outside  of  all  the  other  works — some  face 
tiously  terming  it  their  "country  seat" — where  they 
could  look  at  the  steeples  of  Richmond. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  3d  of  June,  orders 
were  received  by  the  3d  Division,  9th  Corps,  to  ad 
vance  to  the  left  of  its  front.  Lieut.  Col.  Schall 
formed  his  regiment  and  moved  it  to  its  po- 
gition  in  the  line.  At  5  o'clock  A.  M.  orders  were 
given  to  charge  the  enemy's  works.  It  was  imme 
diately  done  by  the  whole  charging  party.  The 
olst,  advancing  with  fixed  bayonets  at  double- 
quick,  was  met  by  the  enemy,  who  were  well  pre 
pared  to  receive  a  charge,  and  poured  volley  after 
volley  into  the  regiment,  which  kept  steadily  ad 
vancing  until  an  unpropitious  bullet  entered  the 
neck  of  Col.  Edwin  Schall,  killing  him  instantly; 
and  at  the  same  time  one  struck  Lieut.  Isaac  Fizone, 
of  Co.  D,  killing  him  instantly  also.  It  is  generally 
believed  ihit  the  one  ball  killed  them  both,  by  pass- 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  561 

ing  through  Lieut.  Fizone's  head  first,  and  then 
through  Col.  Schall's  neck  afterwards;  but  as 
Lieut.  Fizone  was  a  much  taller  man  than  Col. 
Seball,  it  seems  almost  impossible,  unless  the  former 
was  in  a  leaning  forward  position.  Or  again,  it 
may  have,  in  passing  through  the  lieutenant,  struck 
a  bone  that  caused  it  to  glance  downward,  and  then 
striking  the  colonel.  The  command  of  the  regiment 
now  devolved  on  Major  William  J.  Bolton.  The 
regiment  received  a  check,  and  fell  back  with  the 
whole  line  to  its  works,  the  battle  lasting  the  whole 
day.  The  regiment  suffered  considerably  in  killed 
and  wounded.*  The  next  day  the  enemy  made  an 
attack  on  the  whole  line,  but  were  handsomely  re 
pulsed,  with  a  heavy  loss. 

*  Below  is  a  partial  list  of  the  casualties  at  Cold  Harbor : 

Field  and  staff.— Killed— Col.  Edwin  Schall. 

Co.  A.— Killed— Corp.  Frank  II.  Mills.  Wounded— Sergt. 
Jacob  II.  Moyer,  Sergt.  John  H.  Coulston,  Corp.  George 
Uebelle,  Private  Geo.  B.  Baker,  Private  Jacob  Sterns. 

Co.  B.— Killed — Private  Cyrus  Werkeiser.  Wounded — 
Private  Win.  Draher. 

Co.  C. — Killed — Private  John  Upright.  Wounded — Abra 
ham  Walt,  Mark  T.  Yerker. 

Co.  D. — Killed — Lieut.  Isaac  Fizone. 

Co.  E. — Killed— Private  James  M.  Dunkle.  Wounded — 
Private  Robert  Hickerne.l 

Co.  F.  Killed — Henry  K.  Adleman.  Wounded— Sylvanus 
II.  Daub. 

Co.  G.— Killed— Private  Emil  Held.  Wounded— Private 
Charles  Prescott. 

Co.  H. — Killed — Private  Levi  Breniuger,  Private  Aaron 
Will  amson. 

Co.  I. — None. 

Co.  K. — Killed— Private  David  Shingle.  Wounded — Private 
Win.  Buoy,  Private  Benjamin  Hank,  Private  John  Widdell. 

At  the  Po  river.    Co.  F. — Wounded — Wilson  Allen,  severely. 


25 


f>62      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY  FIRST    REOTMKNT 


CHAPTER   IV. 

Progress  of  the  advance — Crossing  the  James — Affair  with  the 
Home  Guards — A  bloody  charge — Severe  loss  s  in  the  51st — 
In  the  rifle  pits — Another  desperate  rush — The  railroad  cut — 
Daring  and  persistent  courage  of  the  troops — Frequent  re 
pulses  of  the  enemy — Close  and  continuous  fighting— Efforts 
to  connect  the  lines — Failures — The  51st  detailed  to  do  the 
work — A  grand  success. 

THE  regiment  still  retained  its  old  position  in  the 
"  country  seat "  works  until  the  10th  of  June,  when 
it  moved  off  towards  the  White  House,  on  the  York 
river,  but  after  going  fifteen  miles  it  halted  for  the 
night.  Early  next  morning  it  started  off  towards 
the  James  river,  making  about  twenty  miles  this 
day,  and  camping  for  the  night  along  the  right  of 
the  road,  in  a  barren,  sandy  field.  On  the  morning 
of  the  13th,  the  regiment  again  started  on  a  march 
of  not  less  than  ten  miles,  arrived  within  a  league 
or  two  of  the  James  river,  and  again  camped  for 
the  night.  On  the  14th,  the  regiment  moved  off 
slowly  on  the  north  side  of  the  James  river,  and 
within  six  miles  of  it.  Pickets  were  posted  for  the 
night.  The  regiment  lay  here  till  the  next  d'ay, 
when  it  started  for  the  landing  a  few  miles  below 
Harrison's,  on  the  James  river,  where  it  arrived  on 
the  16th  of  June,  and  crossed  on  pontoons.  Early  next 
morning,  the  17th,  the  column  advanced  from  below 
City  Point  to  about  five  miles  below  Petersburg. 
Here  they  were  met  by  an  army  of  what  might  be 
properly  styled  "Home  Guards."  Lee  was  not  or 
had  not  the  least  idea  that  Grant  would  try  the  '•'  On 
to  Richmond"  movement  by  crossing  the  James  river, 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  563 

and  in  consequence  had  had  no  troops  on  that  side 
of  the  river — therefore  the  resistance  came  from  the 
rebel  element  in  and  around  the  city  of  Petersburg, 
Virginia,  The  enemy  had  fortifications  built,  with 
but  small  garrisons  in  them.  These  troops,  with  the 
aid  of  the  Petersburg  Home  Guards,  made  a  desper 
ate  fight,  but  were  gradually  driven  back  to  within 
sight  of  the  city.  The  51st  charged  a  line  of  rebels 
on  a  crest  near  the  Petersburg  road,  and  within  a 
mile  of  the  Weldon  railroad,  driving  them  back  to 
the  deep  cut  of  the  railroad  nearly  opposite  to  the 
cemetery.  Getting  possession  of  the  crest,  it  began 
to  entrench  itself,  using  their  tin  cups  and  plates 
to  dig  the  earth.  Here  the  regiment  remained  all 
night.  Its  loss  through  that  day  was  small. 

The  next  day,  the  18th,  the  regiment  formed  line 
of  battle  to  make  another  charge,  when  it  was  found 
that  the  forces  in  its  front  had  been  largely  strength 
ened,  and  that  reinforcements  were  pouring  in  at  a 
rapid  rate.  Lee  had  crossed  the  river  with  his 
forces,  and  was  sending  troops  to  the  front  as  fast  as 
they  arrived.  The  charge,  however,  was  made,  and 
considerably  more  ground  was  gained,  but  at  a 
great  cost  of  blood,  the  51st  losing  on  that  day  sixty- 
four  in  killed  and  wounded,  making  upwards  of 
three  hundred  and  seventy-five  casualties  since  it 
had  crossed  the  Rapidan  on  the  5th  of  May.  After 
the  charge  the  regiment  moved  to  the  right,  into  the 
woods,  and  erected  breastworks  by  felling  the  pine 
trees  and  cutting  them  to  suitable  lengths.  Here 
the  regiment  lay  for  about  a  week,  when  it  was  re 
lieved  and  moved  to  the  rear  to  rest,  but  load  scarcely 
reached  there  when  it  was  ordered  a  little  to  the  left 
of  where  it  previously  had  been  lying,  and  was  again 


564     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

behind  the  breastworks,  where  it  lay  for  several 
days.  It  was  here  that  Capt.  Jos.  K.  Bolton  received 
a  slight  wound  on  the  side  of  the  neck,  from  a  min- 
ie  ball;  and  also  where  private  James  McKenna,  of 
Co.  D,  was  killed,  while  in  the  act  of  filling  his  can 
teen  with  water  from  a  spring  in  a  ravine  in  front  of 
the  works,  about  thirty  yards  from  the  right  of  the 
regiment.  His  death  occurred  on  the  21st  of  June. 

While  here  the  officers'  baggage  was  kept  on  a 
barge  at  the  wharf  at  City  Point.  This  baggage  had 
to  be  sent  out  to  the  front  every  Sunday,  for  the 
officers  to  get  a  change  of  clean  clothing.  At  night 
it  would  be  loaded  on  the  wagon  and  sent  back  to 
the  boat  for  safety.  It  gave  the  officers  less  trouble 
in  moving  about,  as  they  had  no  valises  to  trouble 
them. 

The  re  iment  lay  in  these  pits  for  about  two 
weeks,  eating,  sleeping,  and  living  entirely  in  them. 
Its  next  move  was  about  four  hundred  yards  to  the 
left,  in  an  orchard ;  here  it  threw  up  rifle-pits  and 
held  a  very  important  part  of  the  line,  as  well  as 
one  of  the  most  dangerous,  from  the  fact  that  it  was 
on  a  hill  directly  in  front  of  one  of  the  largest  forts 
that  the  enemy  had  on  his  whole  line,  being  the  fort 
that  was  blown  up  by  Burnside  on  the  30th  of  July 
following.  The  ground  whereon  the  51st  rested 
was  that  occupied  by  Fort  Morton  a  short  time 
after.  Between  this  line  of  pits  and  those  of  the 
rebels  the  railroad  ran  through  a  deep  cut,  forty  feet 
deep,  in  the  side  of  the  hill,  on  which  the  regiment 
lay.  The  rebel  works  were  on  rather  a  more  ele 
vated  position,  with  a  deep  and  ugly  ravine  between 
the  two  lines.  A  creek  ran  through  this  ravine  on 
the  side  nearest  to  the  enemy.  Orders  were  received 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEKS.  565 

to  charge  on  the  enemy's  works.  The  51st  formed 
line  of  battle,  and  started  down  the  hill  at  doable 
quick  towards  this  ravine.  Major  Bolton,  who  was 
now  colonel,  led  the  charge.  The  regiment,  not 
knowing  anything  of  this  deep  railroad  cut,  charged 
down  to  the  very  brink  of  it  before  they  saw  it,  but 
having  such  headway  on  from  running  down  the 
hill,  they  could  not  stop  in  time,  and  went  headlong 
down  the  precipice  before  they  came  to  a  full  stop, 
the  enemy  pouring  volleys  of  grape  and  canister 
into  their  ranks,  besides  their  whole  line  of  musketry 
had  full  play  at  the  same  time  on  them.  After 
reaching  the  bottom  of  the  cut  they  could  not  get 
out,  on  account  of  the  high  perpendicular  walls  of 
earth  on  each  side  of  the  track.  The  enemy  had  an. 
enfilading  fire  from  a  battery  that  could  rake  this 
cut  clear  in  a  few  minutes.  Col.  Bolton  double- 
quicked  his  regiment  down  the  railroad  to  the  other 
side  of  the  Petersburg  road  to  another  ravine  on  the 
left,  then  across  the  ravine  to  a  knoll,  where  they 
entrenched  themselves  for  the  time  being  That 
night  he  took  the  regiment  to  the  top  of  the  hill, 
and  threw  up  rifle-pits  on  the  side  facing  the  enemy. 
The  next  morning  the  enemy,  whose  works  were 
now  very  close,  seeing  ours  in  their  front,  began  a 
vigorous  fire  of  artillery  and  musketry,  to  try  to 
drive  us  out  of  it,  but  to  no  purpose.  The  men  re 
turned  the  fire,  and  kept  possession  of  the  hill  till 
night,  when  Colonel  Bolton  put  the  regiment  to 
strengthening  the  works ;  but  as  soon  as  daylight 
appeared  the  enemy  again  brought  to  bear  on  our 
front  another  battery  that  they  had  got  into  position 
during  the  night  before. 

The  regiment  now  had  a  good  as  well  as  a  strong 


566     HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST   EEGIMENT 

position,  but  was  subjected  to  an  incessant  fire  from 
the  batteries  in  front  and  on  its  right,  as  well  as  from 
the  heavy  line  of  infantry,  which  was  kept  up  day 
and  night  on  them  by  the  now  desperate  foe,  who 
had  failed  to  make  them  fall  back.  Shells  and  case 
shot  or  shrapnel  were  rained  down  on  them,  but  the 
regiment  braved  it  all  and  still  remained  there,  oc 
cupying  pits  of  their  own  construction  far  in  advance 
of  any  other  part  of  the  line  ;  but  in  a  few  days  that 
part  on  the  extreme  left  and  south  of  the  51st  ad 
vanced  and  took  up  a  position  connecting  their  line 
with  that  of  the  51st.  The  line  now  extended  from 
the  Appomattox,  on  the  right,  to  near  the  Yellow 
Tavern  on  the  Weldon  railroad,  on  the  left,  a  dis 
tance  of  about  eight  miles  south  of  the  city. 

The  line  on  the  right  advanced  across  the  Weldon 
railroad  to  the  last  range  of  hills  opposite  to  the 
cemetery,  of  which  the  enemy's  works  were  in  front. 
The  whole  force  now  was  in  between  the  railroad 
and  the  city,  excepting  that  part  of  the  road  which 
curved  short  and  led  into  the  depot;  but  it  was  now 
an  unbroken  line  from  the  right  to  the  left.  The  foe 
was  astounded  at  such  audacity  and  daring,  and  at 
once  determined  to  force  them  back,  if  possible. 
Assaults  were  made  and  met,  but  our  ranks  re 
mained  firm  and  resisted  all  attempts  to  be  routed. 
The  enemy  chagrined  at  his  failure,  then  began 
mounting  heavy  siege  guns,  columbiads  and  mor 
tars,  with  one  battery  of  cohorns  to  the  right  of  the 
Petersburg  road,  going  towards  the  city.  With  these 
he  rained  a  continual  shower  of  shot  and  shell  both 
day  and  night,  with  the  view  of  expelling  our  troops 
from  their  works,  and  to  make  them  fall  back.  In 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      567 

tliis  lie  was  partly  successful.     They  found  the  pits 
too  hot  to  remain  in  them,  but  did  not  fall  back. 

Our  troops  bravely  determined  to  keep  all  the 
ground  they  had  gained,  and  instead  of  falling  back 
they  charged  on  the  enemy's  line,  meeting  with  a 
repulse,  but  not  a  defeat.  As  they  had  reached  the 
same  hill  which  the  enemy  occupied,  they  laid  down 
on  their  stomachs  and  within  one  hundred  and  fifty 
yards  of  the  enemy's  fortifications.  The  part  of  the 
line  that  the  51st  occupied  was  within  one  hundred 
and  eighty  yards  of  the  enemy's,  and  as  it  lay  on  the 
ground  it  began  entrenching  itself,  each  man  with 
the  aid  of  his  tin-cup,  plate  or  spoon,  scratching  a 
little  soil  together  and  piling  it  up  in  front  of  his 
head  and  forming  a  crescent  shaped  shelter,  that  was 
a  slight  protection  to  the  head  only ;  but  even  this 
was  a  dangerous  piece  of  work,  for  the  enemy  poured 
volleys  of  musketry  into  them  incessantly,  and 
although  they  hugged  the  ground  close,  the  elevating 
of  the  elbow  at  times  while  scraping  the  dirt  together 
placed  them  in  great  peril  of  getting  hit  by  the  fly 
ing  missiles  that  filled  the  air.  There  were  a  great 
many  wounded  in  the  51st  but  none  killed.  The 
regiment  continued  there  all  day  and  kept  up  a 
sharp  fire  at  times,  as  a  resting  spell  from  their 
novel  mode  of  entrenching  themselves.  After  night 
set  in  tools  were  obtained,  and  the  ground  thus 
gained  in  the  daytime  was  made  secure  after  dark 
by  rude  breastworks.  The  line  to  the  left  of  the  road 
did  not  connect  with  that  of  the  51st,  and  a  junction 
was  highly  necessary  and  all  important,  but  from 
the  nature  of  the  ground  it  was  impossible  for  a  man 
to  make  the  attempt  and  live,  either  daytime  or 
night.  The  ground  was  very  even  from  the  creek 


568      HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

in  the  ravine  clear  up  to  the  enemy's  works,  but  rose 
in  a  gradual  ascent  along  the  road  from  the  left  of 
the  rear  of  the  51st  up  to  the  top  of  the  hill,  and 
across  this  gentle  ascent  was  where  the  lines  did  not 
connect.  The  enemy's  artillery  and  infantry  had 
full  sweep  along  its  entire  breadth,  which  was  about 
two  hundred  yards  wide.  On  the  first  night  after 
the  51st  had  erected  breastworks  on  their  part  of 
the  line,  two  regiments  were  detailed  to  attempt  the 
connection,  and  the  enemy  knowing  that  such  a 
thing  would  be  tried  by  our  troops,  kept  up  a  con 
stant  fire  with  musketry  and  grape,  from  the  ap 
proach  of  dark  until  long  after  daylight,  to  prevent 
the  connection  being  made.  In  daytime  it  was 
certain  death  for  a  man  to  raise  his  head  up  for  an 
instant  above  his  earthworks.  The  two  regiments 
made  the  attempt  to  connect  the  lines,  but  did 
not  succeed  in  putting  a  pick  in  the  ground,  as  it 
was  utterly  impossible  for  either  officers  or  men  to 
stand  and  live  outside  the  pits.  Although  the  night 
was  very  dark,  yet  the  first  attempt  proved  a  failure. 
The  next  night  another  detail  of  men,  who  knew 
nothing  of  the  danger  or  of  the  appearance  of  the 
ground,  made  the  attempt,  but  in  less  than  fifteen 
minutes  they  left  the  place  in  disgust,  cursing  Burn- 
side,  Meade,  Wilcox,  and  all  the  officers  in  general, 
for  sending  them  to  do  what  they  considered  an 
impossibility.  They  were  willing  to  charge  on  any 
fort  along  the  line,  but  they  would  i(  be  d — d  if  they 
were  going  to  stay  out  there  all  night  as  a  target 
for  cannons  and  muskets,  without  having  some  show 
for  their  lives." 

Gen.   Wilcox,  who    commanded  the   division    to 
which  the  51st  was  attached,  began  to  despair   of 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.      569 

getting  the  connection  made,  and  telling  Gen.  Hart- 
ranft  of  the  ill  success  of  the  two  former  attempts, 
General  Hartranft  replied,  that  he  could  get  a  regi 
ment  that  would  make  the  conjunction.  Wilcox 
requested  him  to  do  so.  Gen.  Hartranft  at  once  de 
tailed  the  51st  P.  V.  V.  to  do  the  work,  and  the  38th 
Wisconsin  to  furnish  the  51st  with  sand  bags.  Col. 
Bolton  received  the  order  and  at  once  determined 
that  the  junction  should  be  effected;  and  giving  his 
head  that  ominous  shake,  indicating  "  do  it  or  die 
trying,"  he  detailed  his  brother  Capt.  J.  K.  Bolton 
and  Lieut.  Gillilan  to  do  the  work. 

Capt.  Bolton  took  one-fourth  of  the  detail  and  be 
gan  at  one  end  ;  Lieut.  Gillilan  took  another  fourth 
and  began  at  the  other  end ;  The  other  half  Capt. 
Bolton  placed  in  the  centre  to  work  each  way.  By 
midnight  enough  was  done  to  admit  the  colored 
company  to  take  possession ;  and  soon  after  the  de 
fence  was  completed.  But  the  38th  Wisconsin  left 
them  early  in  the  evening  and  went  back  to  their 
camp. 

Col.  Bolton  had  to  report  to  Gen.  Wilcox  every 
hour,  to  apprise  him  how  the  work  was  progessing. 
The  report  had  to  be  made  in  writing,  and  that 
being  done  in  the  dark,  must  have  puzzled  the  gen 
eral  to  have  read  it. 

While  Capt.  Bolton  and  his  detail  were  at  the 
work,  the  enemy  kept  up  a  severe  fire  from  their 
batteries,  as  well  as  from  pickets  and  sharpshooters, 
but  the  labor  went  on  all  the  same,  and  just  before 
daybreak  Capt.  Bolton  had  the  satisfaction  to  com 
plete  the  connection  of  the  two  lines.  He  received 
the  congratulations  of  the  officers  of  the  stranger 
regiments  to  whose  line  he  had  connected  his  own, 

25* 


570      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

as  well  as  those  of  his  fellow  officers.  During  the 
time  that  the  detail  was  at  work,  the  remainder  of 
the  51st  was  keeping  up  a  severe  fire  on  the  enemy 
to  silence  them  as  much  as  possible.  Now  that  the 
lines  were  unbroken  and  the  pits  afforded  tolerably 
fair  protection,  the  regiment  lived  altogether  in  the 
works  both  day  and  night. 

Each  company  had  one  or  two  men  detailed  to  do 
the  cooking  for  their  respective  companies,  which 
was  done  about  five  hundred  yards  in  the  rear. 
When  the  rations  were  cooked  the  cooks  would 
have  a  dangerous  duty  to  perform,  in  running  the 
gauntlet,  in  carrying  the  food  in  camp-kettles  out  to 
the  line  to  the  men.  While  discharging  this  duty, 
they  at  once  became  the  targets  for  all  the  sharp 
shooters  within  whose  vision  they  were.  It  was  no 
uncommon  thing  for  a  cook  to  get  hit  while  being 
thus  exposed. 


CIIAPTEK  V. 

A  memorable  shell — Diversion  by  Gen.  Lee — Heavy  assault 
all  along  the  lines — Repulse  of  the  rebels — Narrow  escape  of 
Gen.  Hartranft — Preparations  for  a  grand  assault — Burnside's 
mine — Firing  of  the  train — Awful  explosion  and  loss  of  life — 
Charge  of  the  colored  troops — Failure  of  the  supports  to 
come  up — Meade's  jealousy  of  Burnside — An  important  state 
ment — The  reserve  sent  to  the  rear  by  Mead,  during  the 
charge — Repulse  of  our  troops  and  heavy  losses — Death  of 
Lieut.  Fillman— Battle  of  Yellow  Tavern. 

COL.  BOLTON  now  transferred  his  quarters  to  the 
rear  of  the  pits  about  five  yards,  where  he  fitted 
them  up  quite  comfortably.  He  h3ld  his  position 
for  several  days,  but  as  the  enemy's  shells  were  con 
tinually  dropping  about  that  distance  in  the  rear  of 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      571 

the  line,  and  it  being  otherwise  inconvenient,  he 
moved  down  to  the  foot  of  the  hill  and  put  up 
his  quarters  within  a  couple  of  feet  of  the  edge 
of  the  deep  creek  which  coursed  along  the  west 
side  of  the  ravine.  He  had  just  fairly  got  estab 
lished,  when  a  good  sized  mortar  shell  fell  with 
out  exploding  into  the  water,  only  about  a  foot 
from  his  feet,  while  he  was  standing  at  the  front  of 
his  quarters,  making  him  think  that  he  hadn't  got 
a  much  safer  place  than  the  one  he  left.  The  shell 
falling  in  the  water  extinguished  the  fuse.  The 
colonel  dug  it  out  of  the  rnud  and  cleaned  it,  sent  it 
home,  and  has  it  now  in  his  possession,  handsomely 
painted  in  black  and  gold,  with  the  inscription 
"  Petersburg,  July  13th,  1864,"  on  it. 

About  the  5th  of  July,  1864,  the  enemy  made  an 
attempt  to  draw  Gen.  Grant  away  from  their  front 
by  a  foolish  diversion  on  their  part,  pretending  to 
pay  the  North  another  visit  in  the  shape  of  an  in 
vasion,  but  Gen.  Grant  "  couldn't  see  it,"  and  only 
sent  one  division  of  the  6th  Corps.  Believing  the 
ruse  had  succeeded  and  that  Grant's  army  was  re 
duced  to  a  mere  skeleton  by  it,  they,  on  the  8th  of 
July,  made  a  charge  along  the  whole  front.  Our 
troops  kept  quiet  in  their  pits  until  the  enemy  got 
midway  of  the  two  lines,  when  our  army  sprang  to 
their  feet,  and  pouring  volleys  of  musketry  and  ar 
tillery  into  their  ranks,  sent  them  back  reeling  in 
less  time  than  it  took  them  to  get  there,  with  a 
tremendous  heavy  loss  on  their  side.  The  loss  on 
our  side  was  large,  but  not  one-tenth  of  theirs.  The 
51st  suffered  none,  although  occupying  the  part  of 
the  line  nearest  to  them.  Lieut.  S.  P.  Stephens 
made  a  narrow  escape  from  the  explosion  of  a  shell. 


572     HISTOEY   OF   THE    FIFTY-F1KST   KEGIMENT 

He  had  been  out  on  a  visit  to  the  defences,  and  while 
there  a  heavy  mortar  shell  dropped  close  to  his  feet. 
As  it  was  entering  the  ground  it  exploded,  covering 
him  with  the  dirt,  as  he  threw  himself  down  at  the 
instant  the  shell  passed  his  head,  thus,  perhaps,  sav 
ing  his  life.  While  the  fight  was  going  on,  Gen. 
Hartranft,  who  had  his  stars  put  on  only  a  day  or 
two  before,  was  sitting  in  his  quarters  writing,  when 
a  minie  ball  passed  through,  taking  one  of  his 
stars  off  his  shoulder.  The  General  thought  that  an 
informal  way  of  reducing  his  rank,  and  kept  on 
writing  as  if  nothing  had  happened,  or  there  was  no 
further  danger.  The  undermining  of  the  large  fort 
which  was  directly  in  front  of  the  51st,  and  was  so 
very  annoying  to  the  regiment,  was  in  progress  at 
the  time  the  enemy  made  their  charge.  Great  care 
had  to  be  exercised  to  keep  the  assailants  from 
making  the  discovery  of  the  work,  but  as  they  did 
not  get  as  far  as  expected,  the  secret  was  strictly 
kept.  The  subterranean  passage  was  through  the 
hill  directly  under  the  centre  of  the  regiment. 

Nothing  of  anything  like  interest  among  the  sol 
diers  occurred  until  it  became  known  among  them 
of  the  attempt  of  Burnside  to  blow  up  the  rebel 
fort.  Only  that  party  (the  48th  P.  V.Y.,  Col.  Henry 
Pleasants  commanding)  engaged  in  the  mining  and 
the  51st  were  in  the  secret.  Other  regiments  were 
aware  that  something  of  the  kind  was  going  on,  but 
where,  they  could  not  tell,  nor  had  they  even  sus 
pected  the  place.  As  the  time  for  applying  the 
match  was  drawing  to  a  close,  and  fearing  the  rebels 
had  got  the  information,  it  was  given  out  that  the 
thing  was  a  failure;  but,  at  the  same  time,  the  48th 
were  working  like  beavers.  A  constant  fire  was 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      573 

kept  up  along  the  entire  front,  and  an  occasional 
charge  made  by  a  regiment  or  a  brigade  was  the 
daily  and  nightly  duties  of  all  the  troops.  The  51st 
improved  their  pits  by  widening  them  and  cutting 
them  straighter.  At  length  the  awful  hour  for  the 
explosion  was  named,  which  was  at  daybreak  of  the 
next  day,  July  30th,  1864. 

All  night  before,  orderlies  were  to  be  seen  riding 
from  one  end  of  the  line  to  the  other,  delivering 
orders  to  the  different  commanders.  The  troops 
began  to  move  into  positions ;  regiments  began 
pouring  into  the  ravine  in  the  rear  of  the  51st's 
pits,  and  closing  en  masse  for  the  desperate  on 
slaught  on  their  enemy — who  was  lying  asleep, 
unconscious  that  a  mine  thirty  feet  beneath  them, 
containing  tons  of  powder,  was  about  being  fired. 

The  colored  troops  were  to  charge  first,  and  to  be 
supported  by  the  white  troops.  If  the  explosion  was 
successful  they  were  to  charge  on  into  the  city,  sup 
ported  by  an  ample  reserve  of  white  soldiers.  About 
midnight  the  51st  vacated  the  pits  in  the  front,  and 
took  the  position  assigned  it  in  the  rear  of  the  colored 
troops,  who  now  were  becoming  impatient  from  so 
long  waiting  for  the  word  "  forward."  This  being 
the  first  chance  that  this  body  of  colored  troops  had 
had  of  showing  whether  they  would  fight  or  not, 
they  were  actually  eager  for  it.  Everything  was  now 
ready  and  in  waiting  for  the  approach  of  day ;  with 
straining  eyes  it  was  watched  until  the  tinging  gray 
of  morning  was  seen,  when  instantly  the  match  was 
applied.  Hearts  now  were  beating  high  with  the 
hope  for  a  successful  result,  but  after  waiting  one,  two, 
three,  four,  and  even  five  minutes!  for  the  explosion, 
it  still  did  not  take  place.  Col.  Pleasarits  now  be- 


574     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

came  uneasy ;  the  fuse  had  surely  gone  out ;  day  was 
fast  approaching  ;  an  investigation  was  made,  and  the 
truth  was  evident — the  train  had  refused  to  ignite. 
Soon  an  excavation  was  made  by  the  men  of  the  48th, 
and  a  new  train  and  fuse  relaid ;  the  match  applied, 
the  sun  was  nearly  up,  when  a  rumbling,  trembling 
sensation  was  felt  under  the  feet  of  our  troops  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  ill-fated  fort.  At  the  same  time  a 
dark  grayish  mass  was  seen  ascending  in  the  air  to 
an  altitude  of  about  fifty  feet,  where,  at  its  fullest 
height,  it  seemed  to  remain  stationary  for  an  instant, 
then  came  down  in  an  awful  crash,  creating  a  cloud 
of  dust  that  was  some  moments  in  settling.  As  the 
fort  was  viewed  in  its  ascent  and  descent,  it  plainly 
showed  the  terrible  havoc  that  had  befell  it.  Head 
less  trunks,  arms,  legs,  and  all  parts  of  the  human 
frame  were  there  mingled  with  the  pieces  of  broken 
gun-carriages,  guns,  blankets,  etc.  After  the  settling 
of  the  upheaved  earth,  the  command  to  "forward" 
was  given  to  the  colored  troops,  and,  leaping  over 
our  breastworks,  they  made  one  of  the  most  splendid 
charges  that  had  been  witnessed  along  that  whole 
front;  through  the  crater,  and  far  beyond  it  they  went 
on  the  double-quick,  until  they  were  r  early  to  the 
suburbs  of  the  city.  The  white  troops  failed  to  be 
thrown  forward  in  time  to  complete  the  victory,  and 
it  was  turned  into  an  unsuccessful  attempt.  Meade 
accused  Burnside  of  incompetency,  and  had  done  all 
he  could  to  discourage  the  work  while  in  progress, 
and  only  through  a  selfishness  that  was  unworthy 
of  an  officer  of  rank.  Gen.  Burnside  could  not  show 
himself  along  the  line  but  what  he  was  saluted  with 
cheers  by  all  the  troops.  Gen.  Meade  could  ride  the 
whole  day  among  his  men,  they  scarcely  deigning 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      575 

to  notice  him.  Hence  the  popularity  of  Burnsicle 
was  galling  to  Meade's  jealous  heart,  and  he  desired 
to  see  Burnside  put  down. 

In  the  rear,  about  half  a  mile,  was  a  Gen.  (Smith  or 
White)  with  a  large  body  of  troops,  closed  en  masse, 
and  on  the  reserve.  There  were  several  thousand 
of  them,  and  I,  as  Gen.  Meade's  accuser,  and  holding 
myself  responsible  for  the  accusation,  know  of  him 
riding  up  to  this  Gen.  White  or  Smith,  and  telling 
him  in  an  unofficial  manner,  "  General,  I  guess 
you  might  as  well  take  your  men  back  to  camp," 
and  then  rode  off  toward  Burnside's  headquarters. 
This  was  done  while  the  colored  troops  were  still  on 
the  charge,  and  needed  all  their  support  and  reserves 
to  come  up,  which,  if  it  had  have  been  done,  Peters 
burg  must  and  would  have  fallen,  in  spite  of  every 
resistance  the  rebels  could  offer,  on  that  30th  of  July. 
After  the  colored  troops  had  almost  reached  the 
city,  and  the  white  troops  failing  to  support  them  at 
the  proper  time,  the  enemy,  who  had  been  thrown 
into  confusion  by  the  suddenness  of  the  explosion, 
now  gathered  their  scattered  senses  and  forces,  and 
turned  all  their  guns  on  them  that  they  could  bring 
to  bear.  They  were  being  repulsed  by  the  terrible 
discharges  of  grape  and  canister  from  the  enemy, 
when  the  white  troops  began  to  move  forward  to 
their  assistance,  but  their  colored  comrades  were 
retreating  in  full  force.  Gen.  Hartranft's  division 
succeeded  in  gaining  the  inside  of  the  enemy's 
works,  but  the  colored  troops  were  too  panic-stricken 
to  be  rallied  again,  and  the  few  white  troops  could 
not  hold  the  works  alone,  and  were  ordered  by  Gen. 
Hartranft  back  to  their  own  line.  Gen.  Hartranft 
had  taken  up  his  position  in  the  crater  or  mine,  and 


576      HISTOKY    OF    THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

was  in  a  very  tight  place.  He  and  his  orderlies 
could  not  get  out  to  reach  the  rear.  The  enemy's 
attention  being  now  turned  to  him  and  his  orderlies, 
they  began  to  pour  their  musketry  into  them.  Two 
of  his  orderlies  were  killed,  and  the  third  and  last 
one  escaped  with  the  general,  who  was  more  willing 
to  risk  getting  shot  than  to  being  captured. 

An  extract  from  a  private  letter  gives  a  pretty 
correct  account  of  it.  It  was  written  at  noon  on  or 
near  the  scene,  and  runs  thus  : 

IN  FRONT  OF  PETERSBURG, 

July  30  M,  Noon. 

As  there  was  one  of  the  most  desperate  battles  fought  here 
this  morning  that  has  occurred  during-  this  campaign,  I  must 
write  to  let  you  know  that  I  am  safe 

This  morning  as  day  was  breaking  we  were  aroused  by  the 
heavy  quaking  of  the  earth  and  the  terrible  cannonading. 
The  former  was  produced  by  the  blowing  up  of  the  rebel  forti 
fications  in  front  of  the  51st  P.  V.  V.,  (Gen.  HartranfVs  old 
regiment,  I  believe,  and  I  think  now  commanded  by  Col.  Win. 
Bolton  from  the  same  place  that  Hartranft  is,)  and  the  latter 
bjf  our  artillery  taking  the  advantage  of  the  panic  caused 
among  the  rebels  by  the  awful  explosion  of  our  mines.  We 
have  taken  a  great  many  prisoners,  and  our  loss  is  very  heavy, 
but  not  near  so  heavy  as  the  rebels,  for  they  lost  about  1,200 
men,  300  of  whom  were  buried  alive  in  the  debris  of  the  large 
fort.  Some  of  the  boys  who  were  in  the  mine  say  that  the 
heads,  legs  and  arms,  are  to  be  seen  sticking  up  out  of  the 
ground  in  all  parts  of  it.  There  was  one  division  of  colored 
troops  in  front  of  our  division,  who  made  the  charge,  driving 
the  rebels  out  of  their  works  ;  then  the  rebels  rallied  and  charged 
in  return  on  the  negroes,  the  darkies  broke  and  ran  like  scared 
sheep.  The  rebs  reoccupied  the  works  out  of  which  the  darkies 
drove  them.  They  also  tried  to  drive  the  white  soldiers  from 
ours  ;  but  the  rebs  soon  found  the  whites  were  made  of  sterner 
stuff. 

Col.  Bolton  got  mortally  wounded  this  morning.  Just  this 
minute  the  whole  of  our  line  of  artillery  has  opened  on  the 
rebs.  My  head  actually  aches  with  the  infernal  constant 
racket  that  the  musketry  and  850  cannon  keep  up.  Just  im 
agine,  when  each  gun  can  be  fired  five  times  a  minute,  making 
about  1,750  shots  a  minute,  add  the  report  of  l,7f  0  shells  explod 
ing  in  the  air,  some  of  them  weighing  200  pounds — all  this  is 
independent  of  the  firing  of  the  rebels'  artillery — and  then  you 
can  judge  why  my  head  aches.  Our  regiment  was  not  engaged. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  577 

After  the  whole  of  our  troops  had  retired  to  their 
own  lines,  the  killed  and  wounded  were  principally 
left  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy.  A  great  many  fell  be 
tween  the  two  lines — these  were  secured  after  night 
by  men  crawling  quietly  out  of  the  pits  and  sneaking 
on  their  stomachs  until  they  could  find  a  body,  when 
it  would  be  brought  in. 

About  11  A.  M.  of  the  30th  July  the  51st  had 
taken  its  old  position  in  the  works.  The  enemy 
still  kept  up  a  terrific  fire  and  threw  a  great  quan 
tity  of  mortar  shells,  all  of  which  were  loaded  to  their 
fullest  capacity  with  iron  balls  of  about  the  calibre 
of  the  Harper's  ferry  muskets.  One  of  these  shells 
exploded  when  about  one  hundred  yards  from  the 
earth ;  the  balls  flew  in  all  directions,  one  of  which 
struck  Col.  Bolton  in  the  cheek,  and  passing  down  his 
neck  buried  itself  beneath  the  shoulder  blade,  where 
it  still  remains  at  this  day.  The  ball  struck  him  pre 
cisely  in  the  same  spot  that  he  was  wounded  in  by 
a  minie  ball  at  Antietam.  He  was  carried  off  the 
field  for  dead,  and  was  taken  to  the  hospital  to  be 
attended  to,  and  the  surgeons — Shurlock  and  Rine- 
holdt — had  no  hope  of  him,  still  they  would  try  their 
best  to  save  him,  and  did  ;  but  for  a  long  time  his 
life  hung  by  a  slender  thread.  The  same  explosion 
caused  the  death  of  Lieut  Allan  H.  Fillman  of  Co. 
F,  the  ball  penetrating  his  brain,  killing  him  in 
stantly.  He  was  brought  out  of  the  pits  and  taken 
to  the  rear,  and  his  body  sent  home.  His  loss  was 
deeply  felt  by  all  who  knew  him. 

He  had  only  received  his  commission  two  days 
before,  which  promoted  him  from  commissary  ser 
geant  of  the  regiment,  and  was  mustered  in  only 
the  evening  before  his  death.  He  immediately  went 


578     HISTOEY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

out  to  the  front,  it  might  be  said  to  meet  a  sudden 
death.  Some  of  his  friends  advised  him  not  to  go 
out  to  his  company  until  the  next  day,  but  he  paid 
no  attention  to  the  advice  and  perished. 

The  command  of  the  51st  devolved  on  Maj.  Lane 
S.  Hart,  late  Captain  of  Co.  F,  on  account  of  Col. 
Bolton's  absence,  wounded.  Maj.  Hart,  like  Col. 
Bolton,  was  a  fighting  man,  and  his  vigilance  on  the 
line  showed  him  to  be  no  coward.  A  few  days  after 
assuming  command,  on  the  5th  of  August,  the  enemy 
in  retaliation  for  the  fort  which  Burnside  destroyed 
for  them,  fired  a  fuse  and  blew  up  an  abandoned 
fort  on  the  extreme  left  of  our  line,  on  a  Friday 
afternoon,  but  doing  no  damage  as  the  troops  had 
moved  out  of  it  the  evening  before.  The  enemy 
had  made  great  preparations  for  an  assault  along 
the  whole  line,  but  as  the  fort  went  up  they  were 
chagrined  to  find  it  empty.  Their  preparations  for 
a  charge  were  well  known  to  our  lines,  therefore 
Maj.  Hart  remained  in  the  pits  until  it  was  ascer 
tained  no  charge  on  his  part  of  the  line  was  likely 
to  take  place.  The  enemy  kept  up  a  constant  shell 
ing  and  a  fire  of  musketry  day  and  night ;  the  51st 
returned  the  musketry  with  equal  vigor. 

About  the  first  of  the  month  (August)  Lieut. 
Wm.  W.  Owens,  of  Co.  F,  returned  to  the  regiment 
from  home,  where  he  had  been  on  account  of  the 
wound  received  in  May,  at  the  battle  of  the  Wilder 
ness,  and  reported  for  duty,  but  he  only  remained 
with  the  regiment  two  weeks;  his  wounds  were  un- 
healed,  and  the  surgeons  would  not  let  him  stay, 
therefore  they  sent  him  back  again  on  the  13th. 

The  day  that  Gen.  J.  G.  Farke  assumed  command 
of  the  9th  Corps,  the  regiment  was  relieved  on  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      579 

line  and  moved  back  to  the  rear  near  Burnside's 
headquarters,  where  it  went  into  camp  to  get  a  little 
rest.  The  baggage  was  all  brought  up  from  City 
Point  and  left  in  camp  until  the  regiment  should 
go  to  the  front  again.  The  officers  were  disap 
pointed  when  they  received  their  baggage,  as  it  was 
in  a  most  deplorable  condition.  The  boat  on  which 
it  had  been  stored  for  safe  keeping,  sprung  a  leak 
and  sunk  at  the  wharf  in  about  ten  feet  of  water. 
The  trunks  and  valises  were  got  out  as  soon  as  pos 
sible,  but  not  until  the  books  and  papers  were  all 
totally  ruined,  occasioning  great  inconvenience  to 
all.  The  regimental  books,  as  well  as  the  company 
books,  had  all  to  be  replaced,  but  some  very  valua 
ble  regimental  papers  were  so  totally  defaced  as  to 
be  impossible  to  decipher  them  so  as  to  be  copied. 

The  regiment,  after  spending  a  week  or  so  in 
camp,  went  out  again  to  their  old  works.  The  shell 
ing  and  firing  was  as  severe  as  before,  and  a  man 
had  to  move  about  very  cautiously,  for  the  enemy 
had  erected  a  new  fort  in  a  woods  in  front  of  the 
right  of  the  1st  brigade.  This  placed  them  under 
a  crossfire  from  the  rebels.  The  regiment  staid  here 
until  the  night  of  the  18th,  when  it  departed  and 
marched  to  the  left,  halting  about  7  A.  M.  on  the 
19th  at  the  YelloW  Tavern,  or  near  it,  on  the  Wei- 
don  railroad,  where  it  drew  three  days'  rations,  part 
of  which  were  salt  fish  (mackerel).  While  in  the 
act  of  drawing  the  rations,  the  enemy  attacked  them 
in  heavy  force,  and  a  terrible  battle  ensued  till 
dark,  when  they  fell  back,  with  a  tremendous  loss 
in  killed,  wounded,  and  prisoners.  The  entire  3d 
Division  of  the  9th  Army  Corps,  and  a  division  of 
the  2d  Corps,  bore  the  whole  brunt  of  the  battle. 


580      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

The  loss  in  the  51st  was  very  heavy.  In  the  "heat 
of  battle,  Major  Hart  rode  into  it  on  his  celebrated 
horse  "  Gimlet,"  but  finding  him  too  troublesome  to 
manage  he  jumped  off,  turned  his  horse  loose,  and 
commanded  the  regiment  on  foot.  The  enemy  ad 
vanced  through  a  dense  woods.  The  51st  occupied 
a  clear  field  to  the  right  of  the  Yellow  Tavern,  and 
after  Maj.  Hart  took  it  afoot  they  charged  on  the 
foe  in  fine  style  and  drove  them  far  into  the  woods. 
Our  artillery  could  get  no  position,  and  was  conse 
quently  useless.  The  rebel's  artillery  commanded 
the  entire  line.  Their  grape  did  serious  execution. 
One  struck  Maj.  Hart  just  below  the  hip,  and 
passed  through  both  thighs.  He  fell,  and  it  was 
thought  he  must  die.  But  he  received  immediate 
attention  and  got  well,  but  will  be  a  cripple  the  re 
mainder  of  his  life. 

The  major's  horse  was  found  two  days  afterwards, 
and  was  returned  to  the  groom  by  Gen.  Peter  Lyle, 
who  had  captured  him  during  the  battle. 

As  soon  as  Major  Hart  fell,  Capt.  Joseph  K.  Bol- 
ton,  of  Co.  A,  immediately  assumed  command  as 
senior  officer  of  the  regiment.  The  wounded  were 
directly  removed  to  the  rear,  and  those  who  were 
able  to  help  themselves  went  without  assistance, 
among  whom  was  Lieut.  J.  P.  Brooke,  Co.  F,  Sergt. 
Jno.  W.  Fair,  Co.  C,  Howard  E.  Gordon,  Thos.  Kine- 
hart,  Co.  I,  and  a  great  many  others.* 

*  The  following  are  the  casualties  at  the  Yellow  Tavern,  as 
correct  as  could  be  obtained  at  the  time  : 

Field  and  Staff.— Wounded— Maj.  L.  S.  Hart,  severely. 

Co.  A. — Wounded — Corp.  John  S.  Jones. 

Co.  B. — Captured — Private  Lewis  Group. 

Co.  C. — Wounded — Sergt.  Jno.  W.  Fair. 

Co.  E. — Killed — Corp.  George  W.  Arnaud,  Alfred  Meckley. 

Co.  F. — Wounded — Capt.  Jacob  P.  Brooke. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      581 


CHAPTER   VI. 

Renewal  of  the  battle — Splendid  Union  victory — Ream's  station 
— Return  to  Yellow  Tavern— Fort  building — Rebel  assault  re 
pulsed — Grant's  railroad — Capture  of  rebel  pickets — Politics 
in  camp — Fight  among  the  officers — "Smoked  Yankees" — 
Election  in  the  field — Disciplining — Sheridan's  victory — 
Thanksgiving  turkeys — Fort  Morton — A  hot  place — A  model 
fort-builder — "  Bob's  "  bogus  dinner. 

THE  51st  sent  out  pickets,  was  attacked  in  the 
night,  then  lay  on  their  arms  till  morning,  and  then 
was  attacked  again.  Monday  the  21st,  at  daybreak, 
the  enemy  made  the  attack  with  a  much  heavier 
force  than  of  the  day  before.  They  made  three 
charges  — the  first  and  last  was  very  desperate.  The 
combatants  all  got  mixed  up  in  the  woods,  and  it 
was  no  uncommon  thing  for  a  rebel  to  capture  a 
Yankee,  and,  as  he  was  taking  him  to  the  rear,  to 
pass  a  Yankee  with  a  captured  rebel. 

Bach  charge  was  bravely  repulsed,  but  in  one  the 
2d  Division  of  the  2d  Corps  was  very  near  being 
taken,  as  the  enemy  had  got  in  their  rear,  and  cut 
them  oft';  but  the  3d  Division,  9th  Corps,  attacked 
the  rebels,  capturing  a  great  many,  and  driving  the 
others  back. 

Among  the  rebel  prisoners  was  Major-General 
Fitzhugh  Lee. 

Their  loss  was,  in  killed,  wounded,  and  prisoners, 
from  8,000  to  10,000,  all  of  which  fell  into  our 

Co.  G. — Wounded — Lieut.  C.  B.  Stoneroad.  Captured— 
Thos.  Arbuckle. 

Co.  H. — Wounded — II.  J.  Lingcrman. 

Co.  I.— Wounded — Howard  E.  Gordon,  Thos.  Rinehart. 

Co.  K. — Killed — William  Foster,  Christian  Sheeks.  Wound 
ed — Wm.  Poust,  Ed.  Richards. 


HISTORY    OF    TTTE    FIFTY-FTRST    REGIMENT 

hancU.     Our  loss  altogether  was  about  500  in  killed, 
wounded,  and  missing.* 

We  lay  here  in  line  of  battle  all  the  next  day 
(22d)  and  that  night.  The  next  morning  we  moved 
back  about  two  hundred  yards,  built  a  fortification, 
and  at  night  sent  out  pickets.  We  remained  at  this 
fort  until  3  p.  M.  of  the  25th,  when  orders  were 
issued  to  pack  up  and  be  ready  to  move  in  fifteen 
minutes.  At  the  time  appointed  the  regiment 
started  to  the  relief  of  Hancock's  corps  at  Ream's 
station,  on  the  Weldon  railroad,  about  ten  miles  to 
the  left  of  the  point  from  which  it  had  started.  We 
arrived  on  the  battle-field  at  dark,  and  found  Han 
cock's  corps  retreating,  with  the  loss  of  their  artil 
lery.  The  51st  returned  on  the  Jerusalem  plank 
road,  until  it  got  opposite  to  the  Yellow  Tavern,  but 
about  two  miles  from  it,  and  halted  at  4  A.  M.  of  the 
26th,  put  out  pickets,  and,  after  taking  a  short  sleep, 
it  again  went  back  to  its  old  quarters  at  the  Yellow 
Tavern,  where  it  arrived  at  8  A.  M.,  and  remained 
there  until  the  31st  at  4  A.  M.,  when  it  proceeded 
several  miles  further  to  the  left  into  a  perfect  pine 
wilderness,  about  three  miles  beyond  Fort  Hays. 

*  The  list  of  casualties  in  the  51st  P.  V.  V.  is  not  full,  but 
such  as  it  is  we  give  it. 

Co.  A. — Wounded — Sergt.  Washington  Smith.  Captured — 
Sergt.  Benjamin  P.  Thompson,  Corp.  John  A.  Jordan,  Private 
Henry  Me  Lain,  Private  Win.  Harff. 

Co.  B.— Captured — Private  Jonathan  Brooke. 

Co.  C.— None. 

Co.  D. — Captured — Win.  McManemee. 

Co.  E. — Captured — Isaac  Dolby. 

Co.  F.— None. 

Co.  G. — Killed— Christian  Sheets. 

Co.  H. — Captured — Peter  Smith. 

Co.  I. — None. 

Co.  K. — Captured — Frank  F.  Duck,  Alfred  Kuntz,  Solomon 
Reish,  Alfred  Yohl. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      583 

After  putting  out  pickets,  orders  were  received  to 
fell  trees  and  use  them  for  breastworks.  Plere  for 
several  days  the  regiment  labored  hard,  and  had 
built  a  most  substantial  work  about  five  feet  high 
and  four  hundred  yards  long,  all  out  of  the  tall  pine 
trees  that  were  felled  ;  but  just  as  it  was  finished,  an 
order  came  in  for  us  to  move  a  short  distance  to  the 
right,  and  to  occupy  a  line  of  unfinished  works  of 
the  colored  troops.  This  was  a  most  dismal  place 
to  be  in,  the  ground  being  very  level  and  low ;  it 
partook  somewhat  of  the  nature  of  a  huge  swamp, 
only  the  bottom  was  hard,  the  water  several  inches 
deep  in  places,  and  the  timber  of  gigantic  size, 
thickly  undergrown  with  briars  and  bushes  of  all 
kinds.  Here  the  51st  re-commenced  and  finished 
the  works  that  had  been  left  by  the  colored  troops. 
After  getting  it  done,  the  complaints  from  the  men 
about  the  water  caused  a  removal.  Captain  Bolton 
advanced  the  regiment  a  short  distance  to  the  right 
and  front;  here  the  ground  wras  something  better, 
and  a  new  work,  with  a  large  fort,  was  erected,  and 
the  men,  although  closer  to  the  enemy,  were  much 
better  satisfied.  They  would  sooner  be  exposed  to 
their  foe's  shot,  than  to  stand  in  water,  but  it  took  a 
strong  picket  line  to  keep  the  position. 

The  regiment  lay  here  for  several  days,  then  was 
moved  further  to  the  right,  and  about  half  a  mile  to 
the  left  of  Fort  Hayes,  and  began  erecting  new 
works  on  the  2d  September.  While  at  this  place 
Captain  B.  B.  Moore,  of  the  138th  P.  V.,  was  as 
signed  as  quartermaster  of  the  1st  Brigade,  3d  Di 
vision,  9th  Corps.  This  was  a  beneficial  change  for 
the  brigade,  and  especially  for  the  51st  P.  V.  "V.,  for 
the  butchers  of  the  brigade  had  been  allowed,  by  the 


584     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMEXT 

former  quartermaster,  to  retain  for  their  own  profit 
all  the  fat,  hearts,  and  liver  of  the  beeves  killed  Cor 
the  use  of  the  brigade,  for  which  they  charged  the 
men  from  50  cents  to  $1  for  a  heart,  and  from 
$1.50  to  $2.50  for  a  liver;  but  now  it  was  different; 
these  butchers  were  enlisted  privates,  who  sought  to 
be  detailed  on  that  duty,  to  keep  from  being  sent 
out  to  the  pits.  Captain  Moore  determined  that  they 
should  not  charge  true  soldiers  such  high  prices. 
Twenty-five  cents  for  a  heart,  and  fifty  cents  for-  a 
liver,  and  nothing  for  the  fat,  was  the  scale  of  prices 
issued  under  him  ;  and  if  any  of  the  butchers  were 
not  satisfied  with  such  prices,  they  could  return  to 
their  respective  regiments  and  carry  their  muskets. 
But  had  he  told  them  that  they  might  kill  cattle  for 
one-half  the  pay  they  were  getting  as  privates,  or 
carry  the  gun,  they  would  have  taken  the  half  pay 
and  staid  in  the  rear.  Fresh  beef,  potatoes,  salt  fish, 
cod  and  mackerel,  onions,  cabbage,  &c.,  with  full 
rations  of  whiskey,  were  issued  at  this  place,  and  the 
men  lived  in  comfort,  having  clean  quarters,  plenty 
of  good  water,  in  wells  that  were  dug  in  each  com 
pany's  street,  very  little  fighting  to  do,  only  out  on 
the  picket  line,  but  plenty  of  policing  and  wood- 
chopping  duty. 

About  3  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  10th  Sep 
tember,  the  enemy  attacked  the  right  of  our  brigade, 
and  the  fight  lasted  till  8  A.  M.,  at  which  time  the 
aggressors  were  charged  on  and  driven  into  their 

oo  o 

own  works  and  out  of  them,  our  men  taking  posses 
sion  of  their  skirmish  line  pits. 

On  the  9th  September  Grant's  City  Point  railroad 
was  completed  to  the  left,  where  the  51st  lay.  This 
railroad  was  a  novelty  in  itself;  no  grading  of  any 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      585 

account,  the  tics  temporarily  laid,  the  rails  as  tem 
porarily  put  on  them,  and  the  track  waving  up  and 
down  hill  from  the  right  to  the  left.  Heavy  trains 
of  ammunition  and  supplies  would  pass  over  the 
track ;  and  when  on  the  top  of  a  grade  or  hill,  a  full 
head  of  steam  would  be  put  on,  giving  the  train  suf 
ficient  speed  and  momentum  to  drive  it  up  the  next 
hill  opposite  ;  if  it  did  not  succeed,  the  train  would 
back  down  to  the  hollow  and  take  a  fresh  start,  and, 
with  the  aid  of  the  troops  pushing,  it  would  be  got 
over  the  ascent;  but  this  didn't  happen  often,  the 
engineers  knowing  the  draught  of  their  train,  and 
what  amount  of  steam  was  necessary,  were  pretty 
successful.  The  engine  and  cars  were  Uncle  Sam's, 
and  if  they  smashed  up  a  few  why  he  could  afford 
it.  This  railroad  was  a  great  benefit  to  the  army. 
If  a  small  body  of  troops  were  wanted  in  a  "  hurry  " 
at  any  part  of  the  line,  they  were  put  on  the  cars, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  could  be  at  the  point  where 
wanted;  also  saving  the  poor  mules  from  dragging 
heavy  loads  through  mud  from  City  Point  to  the  left. 
About  2  o'clock  A.  M.  of  the  10th  September  the 
troops  in  Fort  Hays,  and  on  the  right  of  the  51st, 
captured  a  large  number  of  rebel  pickets,  who  were 
trying  to  get  in  the  rear  of  ours. 

The  time  of  a  number  of  the  men  of  the  51st  who 
did  not  re  enlist  expiring  on  the  12th  September,  they 
were  discharged  and  on  the  following  day  left  for 
home,  among  them  were  George  Brash  of  Co.  C., 
and  Chas.  Rodenbaugh. 

On  the  12th,  orders  were  received  changing  the 
troops  in  the  9th  Corps,  and  transferring  regiments 

to  other  brigades  and  divisions.     The  1st  brigade  of 

20 


586    HISTORY  OF  THE  FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

the  3d  division,  in  which  was  the  51st,  was  trans 
ferred  as  1st  Brigade,  1st  Division,  9th  Corps. 

An  attack  was  expected  from  the  enemy  on  the 
left  of  the  51st,  and  they  had  been  watched  closely 
for  more  than  a  week  ;  on  the  17th  they  drove  in 
our  pickets,  bat  in  tarn  were  driven  back,  only  one 
man  slightly  wounded  in  the  51st. 

On  the  night  of  the  21st,  the  pickets  in  front  of 
the  51st  opened  a  constant  and  rapid  fire  on  the 
enemy.  The  regiment  roused  up,  fell  in  line  of 
battle  and  awaited  further  orders  until  daylight, 
when  it  stacked  arms  in  the  works  and  got  breakfast. 

Politics  now  began  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
51st  more  than  did  the  enemy,  as  the  presidential 
election  was  drawing  nigh.  The  "  loyal  "  element 
in  the  regiment  was  far  in  the  majority,  those  ad 
vocated  the  re-election  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  and 
nearly  all  the  veterans  were  his  advocates,  in  fact  there 
were  but  five  enlisted  men,  veterans,  who  were  of 
the  u disloyal"  or  "peace  at  any  price  party"  and 
advocated  McClellan's  cause.  Only  one  of  the  com 
missioned  officers  who  were  present  was  a  McClellan 
man,  and  he  intended  to  quit  the  service  as  soon  as 
his  term  expired,  which  would  be  in  a  few  weeks. 
Although  he  felt  that  his  presence  in  the  regiment 
was  disagreeable,  yet  such  was  not  the  case.  He 
was  an  estimable  gentleman,  a  good  soldier,  brave 
and  generous,  and  as  such  commanded  the  respect 
of  his  superior  officers.  But  being  very  young,  and 
having  too  little  prudence  in  the  matter,  he  allowed 
himself  to  be  drawn  into  political  arguments  on 
every  occasion  offered,  always  getting  the  worst  of 
it ;  he  felt  that  he  was  alone,  not  respected,  and  dis 
liked,  when  in  fact  there  was  but  one  in  the  whole 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      587 

regiment  that  ever  bore  him  any  malice,  and  that 
was  a  young  lieutenant  of  the  same  rank,  who  only 
disrelished  his  politics,  which  repugnance  ended  in  a 
few  weeks  after,  on  the  day  of  the  election,  in  a  fight 
which  will  be  referred  to  in  its  proper  place. 

Several  letters  from  the  regiment  written  by  dif 
ferent  correspondents  appeared  in  different  papers  at 
home  about  this  time.  One  of  them  gave  offence  to 
a  few  of  the  McClellan  party  in  the  town  in  which  the 
communications  were  published.  They  tried  to  find 
out  the  author  ''  Cains  Claudius,"  and  sent  a  number 
of  letters  to  the  51st  for  that  purpose,  at  the  same 
time  endeavoring  to  fill  their  friends  with  enmity 
against  that  writer,  in  which  they  succeeded.  Sev 
eral  visited  Lieut.  Stephens's  quarters,  thinking  that 
he  either  wrote  the  obnoxious  epistle  or  that  he 
knew  who  did.  The  lieutenant,  although  he  knew 
the  author,  who  happened  at  that  very  time  to  be  in 
his  tent,  claimed  to  be  the  originator  by  saying  to 
them,  "  Why,  if  I  did  write  it,  ain't  it  true  to  the  very 
last  letter?"  They  now  were  puzzled  and  replied, 
'•  d—  d  if  we  believe  you  wrote  it,  but  we  will  find  out 
who  did,  and  God  help  him  if  we  do."  The  lieutenant 
then  asked  them  the  objection  to  it;  they  stated  that 
their  friends  at  home  told  them  in  a  letter,  that  the 
author  had  stated  that  "  all  the  copperheads  in  the 
regiment  and  the  army  were  bummers,  shysters, 
stragglers  and  deserters.  Lieut.  Stephens  replied, 
"  W  hoever  sent  you  any  such  word  are  infernal  liars, 
for  I  saw  the  letter  myself  before  it  was  sent  off,  and 
it  did  not  contain  any  such  a  sentiment,"  and  further 
told  them  he  would  get  a  cop}''  of  the  paper  and  see 
if  such  was  the  case.  They  then  visited  the  com 
missary  sergeant  (Parker)  the  next  day,  and  asked 


588      HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

him  if  he  was  the  author  of  the  letter  of  a  certain 
date,  over  the  signature  of  "  Caius  Claudius ;"  they 
were  asked  "  Why?"  they  said  he  had  written  that 
all  the  copperheads  were  bummers,  &c  ,  and  they 
were  determined  to  find  out  who  the  author  was 
and  make  him  retract  the  letter,  or  take  a  "  licking," 
but  while  this  was  going  on  in  the  sergeant's  tent, 
W.  P.  Schall  brought  the  mail  in,  and  the  subject 
was  dropped  until  the  mail  was  distributed.  A 
paper  containing  the  letter  in  dispute  was  sent  to 
the  sergeant  and  the  obnoxious  part  was  read,  but 
with  an  entirely  different  meaning,  for  the  sentence 
read  "that  all  the  bummers,  shysters  and  deserters 
were  copperheads,"  and  not  that  "  all  the  copperheads 
were  bummers,  &c."  The  difference  mollified  them 
to  a  great  extent,  but  was  not  altogether  satisfactory ; 
but  they  never  said  any  more  about  it,  only  in  a 
casual  conversation  among  the  men,  for  they  began 
to  enumerate  the  different  cases  and  they  found  that 
nearly  if  not  all  the  deserters  were  of  their  party. 
But  the  letter  had  caused  such  an  excitement  among 
the  few  "peace  democrats,"  that  it  had  an  injurious 
effect  on  those  who  were  lukewarm  by  turning  them 
into  McClellanites,  and  the  half  dozen  or  so  demo 
crats  in  the  regiment  found  their  ranks  swelled  to  a 
dozen  or  fifteen. 

The  regiment  remained  here  until  Sunday,  the  25th 
of  September,  1864,  when  it  moved  about  hall'  a 
mile  to  the  right  and  garrisoned  Fort  Alexander 
Hays;  while  here  it  was  relieved  from  picket  duty, 
which  was  done  in  front  of  the  fort  by  colored  troops 
only.  The  second  day  of  the  regiment's  stay  here 
twenty -one  deserters  from  the  enemy  came  into  our 
lines.  Shortly  after  the  enemy  charged  on  the 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      589 

colored  pickets  and  drove  them  in,  wounding  a 
great  many  ;  when  they  rallied  and  in  turn  drove 
the  enemy  back  to  their  own  line,  and  then  took  up 
their  old  position. 

The  enemy  now  having  fully  discovered  that  the 
"  smoked  Yankees  "  were  on  duty  in  their  front,  they 
sought  to  annoy  and  harass  them  as  much  as  possi 
ble.  Therefore  every  two  or  three  hours  they 
would  "kick  up  a  muss"  with  their  sable  enemies 
and  compel  the  51st  P.  V.  V.  and  the  79th  N.  Y. 
Highlanders  to  jump  to  their  guns,  which  were  all 
the  time  kept  "  stacked  "  in  line  in  the  works  of  the 
fort. 

At  night  they  were  very  troublesome,  causing  the 
two  regiments  to  jump  up  out  of  a  sound  sleep  per 
haps  three  to  five  times  every  night.  Sometimes 
the  "  smoked  Yankees  "  and  the  "  Johnnies"  would 
"kick  up  a  muss"  that  would  draw  the  whole  line 
into  it  for  several  miles  in  extent.  The  shelling 
would  be  kept  up  by  both  sides.  An  extract  from 
a  private  letter  gives  a  slight  idea  of  the  annoyance, 
viz. : 

"Our  regiment  and  the  79th  K  Y.  Highlanders  are  holding 
and  doing  garrison  duty  at  Fort  Hays.  The  colored  troops  do 
the  picketing,  and  about  every  two  or  three  hours  the  '  smoked 
Yankees,'  as  the  secesh  call  them,  and  the  rebels  get  at  it,  and 
start  a  fight  along  the  line  for  seven  or  eight  miles,  and  both 
parties  bring  all  their  guns  and  mortars  into  action,  and  it 
beats  the  devil  to  see  the  shells  at  night  flying  and  singing 
through  the  air.  It  is  a  magnificent  sight  to  look  at,  but  some 
come  too  close — then  they  are  not  so  magnificent !  My  prin 
cipal  objection  is  that  a  fellow  has  to  get  up  so  often  through 
the  night,  out  of  a  sound  sleep,  to  run  into  the  breastworks  for 
safety.  We  have  sixty-five  thousand  rounds  of  ammunition 
and  six  days'  rations  stored  away  in  the  magazine  in  case  we 
get  besieged.  There  are  no  troops  of  any  account  near  us  that 
could  give  us  any  support.  They  have  all  gone  far  off  on  the 
left,  towards  the  Southside  railroad,  where  they  have  been 
fighting  for  two  days  and  nights,  but  with  what  success  I  can't 
say.  We  heard  last  night  that  the  51st  N.  Y.  and  the  45th  P. 


590     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

V.  V.  were  captured,  but  how  true  it  is  I  can't  tell.  The  rebs 
have  a  very  strong  force  now  in  our  front  here.  They  have  a 
very  large  fort  directly  opposite  ours." 

On  the  1st  October,  1864,  Col.  Wm.  J.  Bolton  and 
Lieuts.  Owen  and  Coulston  arrived  here  from  their 
homes,  having  recovered  from  their  wounds  to  a 
certain  extent. 

On  the  4th,  about  9  P.  M.,  word  went  along  the 
whole  line  that  Richmond  had  "  gone  up,"  and,  as 
the  news  spread,  cheers  resounded  with  a  will,  but 
the  51st  had  been  "  sold"  once  before  on  it,  as  they 
were  coming  down  the  Neuse  river  on  the  trans 
ports,  to  join  McClellan  at  the  seven  days'  fight; 
consequently  not  a  man  "could  see  it,"  and  had  no 
cheer  to  give.  It  must  be  stated  here  that  while  the 
51st  was  at  Fort  Hays,  it  was  an  "independent  com 
mand,"  being  cut  loose  from  the  brigade  when  the 
troops  went  off  to  the  Southside  railroad.  On<  Satur 
day,  Oct.  8th,  the  regiment  moved  to  the  left,  and 
rejoined  the  brigade  of  Gen.  Hartranft,  near  the 
l<  Peeble's  Farm,"  not  far  from  Hatcher's  run.  The 
Election  Commissioner,  Mr.  Samuel  Jamison,  arrived 
on  the  9th  at  the  regiment,  and  Gen.  Hartranft  ex 
tended  the  hospitalities  of  his  tent  to  him.  On  Oct. 
llth,  Lieut.  S.  P.  Stephens  was  detailed  from  the 
regiment  as  quartermaster  of  the  Artillery  Brigade 
of  the  9th  Corps,  and  left  the  regiment  for  his  new 
position  on  the  next  day.  Col.  Bolton  then  ap 
pointed  Lieut.  Wm.  F.  Thomas  to  fill  the  temporary 
vacancy  of  regimental  quartermaster.  Lieut.  Geo. 
H.  Smith,  Co.  C.;  was  detailed,  while  lying  here,  to 
act  as  adjutant  of  the  regiment,  during  the  temporary 
absence  of  Lieut.  J.  P.  Brooks,  who  now  was  com 
missioned  captain  Co.  F,  and  had  been  home  on  a 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  591 

leave  of  absence,  but  returned  to  the  regiment,  Oct. 
15th,  fully  recovered  from  his  wound.  On  the  14th 
of  October  a  man  belonging  to  the  8th  Michigan, 
and  who  cooked  for  Gen.  Hartranft's  orderlies,  was 
detected  in  abstracting  letters  containing  money 
from  the  brigade  mail  bag,  and  when  closely  ques 
tioned  he  confessed  to  have  been  doing  so  every  day 
for  two  weeks  before,  and  that  he  had  sent  home 
$800,  besides  $200  found  on  him  at  the  time.  The 
regiment  had  been  paid  off  on  the  8th,  and  no  doubt 
the  villain  had  got  a  considerable  sum  from  our  boys. 
On  the  15th  an  order  was  received  from  army  head 
quarters  granting  furloughs  from  ten  to  fifteen  days, 
to  two  men  at  a  time  from  each  company.  On  the 
llth  October  the  election  took  place  for  State  officers, 
resulting  in  a  Union  majority  of  eighty-three  in  the 
regiment.  As  it  is  generally  believed  that  the  elec 
tion  in  the  army  was  influenced  by  threats,  &c., 
against  those  who  wished  to  vote  the  Democratic 
ticket,  no  one,  no  matter  who,  can  say  in  truth  that 
the  election  in  the  51st  was  influenced  in  any  way 
through  the  interference  of  Col.  Bolton  or  his  officers, 
but  on  the  contrary  every  man  was  persuaded  by 
Col.  Bolton  to  go  and  vote  just  as  he  pleased.  Lieut. 
Geo.  Schall,  of  Co.  I,  was  appointed  judge  of  the  elec 
tion,  who,  as  all  his  acquaintances  know,  was  a  rank 
Democrat.  After  the  election  was  over,  Lieut.  Geo. 
H.  Smith,  acting  adjutant,  accused  Schall  of  being 
partial  towards  certain  voters.  A  quarrel  ensued, 
resulting  in  the  "lie  "  being  given  by  Lieut.  Smith, 
when  Schall  struck  him  in  the  face,  and  they  grasped 
and  took  it  ''  rough  and  tumble,"  in  front  of  the  ad 
jutant's  tent,  and  finally  ended  in  the  adjutant's 
office,  by  the  upsetting  of  Com.-Sergt.  Parker,  who 


592      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY  FIRST   REGIMENT 

\vas  sitting  in  there  filling  out  a  requisition  for 
rations;  the  desk,  table,  trunks,  valises,  &c.,  with 
the  "special  orders"  were  scattered  around  quite 
freely.  As  the  combatants  were  not  equal  in  size, 
the  smaller  one  made  up  in  "  spunk  "  and  agility,  and 
it  became  a  drawn  battle,  when  they  both  retired  to 
the  inside  of  their  "ditches"  to  make  up  their  list  of 
casualties  in  killed,  wounded,  and  missing,  which 
was  very  light,  considering  that  the  two  antagonists 
had  brought  into  action  all  their  forces.  The  result 
was,  one  man  had  received  a  slight  wound  from  a 
11  hand-grenade "  on  the  side  of  his  face,  as  if  there 
had  been  a  nail  in  it.  The  loss  on  the  other  side 
was  an  internal  wound  in  the  rear  of  the  nasal  organ, 
producing  hemorrhage  from  that  appendage  to  the 
extent  of  nearly  a  teaspoonful.  Why  it  was  that 
Col.  Bolton  never  recognized  this  battle  and  re 
ported  it  to  Gren.  Park",  that  a  "special  order" 
might  have  been  issued,  for  the  regiment  to  inscribe 
it  on  its  battle-flag,  is  for  the  colonel  to  answer. 

An  incident  of  another  character  occurred  while 
lying  near  the  Feeble  house.  Some  of  the  com 
pany  cooks  made  a  fire  in  the  woods  for  the  purpose 
of  cooking  rations.  After  it  had  been  burning  some 
time,  a  rebel  shell,  that  had  buried  itself  two  or 
three  inches  in  the  ground  before  the  fire  was  made, 
exploded,  while  seven  men  were  sitting  around  it, 
cleaning  everything  out.  Not  a  spark  of  fire  was 
left,  and,  strange  to  say,  not  a  man  was  in  the  least 
harmed. 

On  the  17th  the  regiment  moved  a  little  further 
to  the  right,  near  "Davis's  house,"  where  was  insti 
tuted  Col.  Bolton's  "special  staff,"  which  not  a  few 
will  remember,  particularly  those  who  dug  out  the 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  593 

most  stumps  and  were  the  most  frequent  on  his 
"staff,"  besides  the  more  conspicuous,  who  paraded 
the  parapets  of  the  works  with  a  small  log  on  their 
shoulder,  for  misconduct.  Some  for  "shysting  out 
of  a  fight/'  some  for  stealing,  some  for  deserting,  &c. 
While  at  this  camp  a  deserter  was  shot,  who  for 
merly  had  belonged  to  the  2d  Maryland,  on  Friday, 
Oct.  21st.  His  crime  was  deserting  and  joining  the 
enemy's  ranks.  He  was  captured  in  a  fight,  with 
his  gun  in  his  hands,  fighting  against  the  Union 
army,  tried  by  a  court-martial  and  sentenced  to  be 
shot.  The  place  of  execution  was  a  few  yards  in 
the  rear  of  the  51st's  camp. 

On  Oct.  22d,  Saturday,  these  men  were  drummed 
around  the  inside  of  a  hollow  square,  formed  by  the 
9th  Corps,  with  large  placards  on  their  backs,  spe 
cifying  their  crimes.  Two  read,  '*  I  deserted  in  front 
of  the  enemy  during  a  fight,  and  skulked  to  the 
rear."  The  other  was,  "  I  arn  a  coward,  and  have 
been  absent  without  leave." 

At  9  o'clock  p.  M.,  22d  October,  a  despatch  was 
received,  informing  the  line  of  Sheridan's  complete 
victory  over  Early  and  Longstreet,  in  Shenandoah 
Valley.  The  cheers  began  at  City  Point  and  went 
along  the  whole  line,  a  distance  of  sixteen  miles,  in 
less  than  half  an  hour.  Such  cheering  was  never 
heard.  The  rebels  in  our  front  began  to  cheer  for 
Me  Clel  .an,  then  our  pickets  took  it  up  and  cheered 
for  Lincoln,  and  all  the  bands  played  until  midnight. 
The  enemy  began  shelling,  to  add  interest  to  the 
occasion,  then  our  batteries,  to  increase  the  din  and 
noise,  opened  on  the  enemy,  and  a  noisier  night 
was  seldom  heard  on  that  line. 

On  October  the  22d    ninety-two   recruits  arrived 
20* 


594     HISTORY 'OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

for  the  regiment.  They  were  principally  from  Wayne 
county,  Pa.  The  most  of  them  were  drafted  men. 
Only  a  few  were  substitutes,  whom  the  veterans 
facetiously  termed  "subs;"  and  on  the  24th  about 
two  hundred  and  eight  more  arrived. 

On  the  27th  the  regiment  (only  the  vets.)  went  out 
to  Hatcher's  run  on  a  '  reconnoissance  in  force,"  as 
it  was  called,  but  it  turned  out  to  be  a  three  days' 
fight,  in  which  the  51st  suffered  severely  in  wounded 
among  whom  were  George  S.  Casselberry  and  John 
Camden,  of  Co.  F.,  who  each  lost  a  leg. 

While  the  veterans  were  doing  up  these  three 
days  fighting,  the  quarters  of  the  regiment,  and  also 
the  property  of  the  same,  were  removed  back  to 
their  old  camp  in  the  woods  at  the  Feeble  house,  for 
the  purpose  of  drilling  the  "green  recruits,"  who 
certainly  were  "green"  enough. 

On  the  30th  the  veterans  returned  from  "their  rc- 
connoissance  in  force,"  and  went  into  camp  along 
with  the  recruits,  drilling  now  constantly  and  long 
at  a  time. 

On  the  26th  November,  1864,  the  regiment  re 
ceived  quite  a  treat  from  the  citizens  of  New  York, 
in  the  shape  of  what  was  to  have  been  our  Thanks 
giving  dinner,  but  though  delayed  two  days,  it  was 
none  the  less  acceptable.  It  was  a  complete  feast, 
and  more  than  could  be  eaten  in  two  clays,  consist 
ing  of  roast  turkeys,  beef  a  la  mode,  apples,  onions, 
potatoes,  smoking  and  chewing  tobacco,  mince  pies, 
full  of  brandy,  and  cakes.  A  nice  little  incident 
occurred,  and  a  very  agreeable  one  to  the  lucky  per 
sons.  One  barrel  of  the  turkeys  was  largely  contrib 
uted  to  by  a  Miss  Louisa  Dietz,  of  No.  132  William 
street,  New  York,  and  five  of  the  turkeys  that  she 


OP  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      595 

contributed  were  issued,  one  to  Col.  Bolton,  one  to 
Capt.  Bolton,  one  to  Capt.  J.  P.  Brooke,  and  the 
other  one  to  Lieut.  George  H.  Smith.  Lieut.  Smith, 
whose  supper  was  soon  ready,  after  carving  his  "  ra 
tion  "  of  turkey  off'  the  outside,  attempted  to  force 
his  knife  through  the  bones  to  get  at  the  stuffing, 
but  it  wouldn't  go  through  on  account  of  a  hard 
substance  inside.  Investigating  the  cause,  he  found 
a  bottle  of  the  best  pale  brandy  very  ingeniously 
stuffed  into  the  turkey,  and  carefully  moulded  over 
with  splendid  bread  stuffing. 

An  extract  from  a  private  letter  of  an  officer  of 
the  regiment  gives  a  better  description  than  can  the 
writer  of  this  work,  viz. : 

"  *  *  *  *  Five  very  large  turkeys,  each  with  one  bot 
tle  of  the  best  pale  brandy  in  them,  which  was  very  ingeniouly 
put  inside  of  the  turkeys,  and  then  all  indications  of  a  bottle 
being  in  them  were  carefully  concealed  from  view  by  filling 
up  the  cavities  with  splendid  bread  stuffing,  and  tying  the  ends 
of  the  legs  on  one  side  of  the  neck  of  the  bottle,  and  the  tail  on 
the  other  side,  and  carefully  plastering  all  places  up  with 
stuffing.  This  gave  them  the  appearance  of  a  very  full  stuffed 
turkey.  Now  I  must  tell  you  who  were  the  lucky  ones  that 
got  them,  and  it  was  all  by  chance,  for  when  they  were  all 
given  out,  no  one  dreamt  of  any  such  a  thing  as  liquor  being 
in  them.  So  last  night  Lieut.  Smith,  our  adjutant,  went  to 
cut  up  his  turkey  for  supper,  and  had  got  the  outside  of  it  cut 
off,  when  he  tried  to  cut  the  turkey  into  halves,  but  his  knife 
would  not  go  straight  through,  on  accocnt  of  some  hard 
obstacle.  He  began  then  to  investigate  the  cause  by  removing 
the  stuffing,  when  the  first  thing  that  greeted  his  eyes  was  a 
bottle  of  brandy  stuck  in.  So  this  morning  I  looked  at  mine, 
and  there  was  one  sure  enough.  I  called  the  colonel  in  and 
treated  him,  and  he  said  he  must  look  after  his,  and  sure 
enough  there  was  one  in  his,  and  one  in  Capt.  Bolton' s,  then 
Capt.  Brooke  thought  it  time  for  him  to  look,  and  he  also 
found  one.  It  afforded  considerable  amusement  for  a  time  at 
Miss  Dietz's  expense." 

On  the  29th  November  the  51st  struck  tents  and 
moved  to  the  right.  It  arrived  at  Fort  Morton,  op 
posite  the  crater,  on  the  morning  of  the  30th,  where 


596     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

it  took  up  its  quarters  in  bomb-proofs.  A  great 
change  had  been  made  in  the  works  while  the  regi 
ment  was  on  the  left.  Traverses  had  been  dug  from 
the  fort  out  to  the  ravine,  near  the  picket  line.  At 
night  a  detail  of  one  hundred  and  eight  men  were 
sent  out  to  the  front  line  on  picket,  in  the  pits  that 
were  dug  by  the  51st  several  months  before. 

This  was  found  to  be  a  pretty  hot  place.  The 
heavy  mortar  shells  were  continually  dropping  all 
day  and  night,  and  riot  a  day  from  that  time  until 
Petersburg  became  evacuated  was  it  any  less  ;  but 
every  few  days  it  would  be  worse.  The  routine  oi 
duty  was  a  sameness,  from  ninety-eight  to  one  hun 
dred  and  ten  men  every  day  for  picket,  besides  one 
commissioned  officer  to  go  out  with  them ;  twelve 
to  fifteen  men  daily  for  fatigue  duty,  such  as  cutting 
and  hauling  wood,  repairing  works,  etc.  The  re 
mainder  drilling,  both  fore  and  afternoon,  in  squad, 
company,  battalion,  brigade  and  division  drill ;  regi 
ment,  brigade  and  division  dress  parades,  with  a 
good  deal  of  drilling,  and  winding  up  with  passing 
in  review. 

Col.  Harriman,  of  the  37th  Wisconsin,  commanded 
the  brigade,  although  Colonel  Bolton  was  his  senior 
officer,  but  from  a  mistake  made  at  headquarters, 
Col.  Harriman  was  assigned  to  the  command.  As 
soon  as  the  mistake  was  discovered,  the  assignment 
was  offered  to  Col.  Bolton.  Col.  Bolton  thought  as 
Harriman  was  there  he  might  stay,  and  he  did.  The 
men  of  the  51st  were  dragged  out  on  brigade  drill, 
simply  because  their  brigade  commander  wanted  to 
gratify  his  vanity.  It  was  not  that  he  could  teach 
them  anything,  for  there  was  scarcely  a  veteran  but 
could  drill  a  brigade  as  well,  if  not  better ;  but  he 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  597 

wanted  to  put  in  exercise  all  his  military  power,  to 
show  what  a  "  big  man  "  he  was.  He  even  formed  a 
"school  for  officers,"  so  they  could  learn  how  to  drill 
the  ''facings;"  all  this  to  attract  the  attention  of  officers 
of  higher  rank.  But  his  last  attempt  to  establish 
his  high  military  fame  capped  the  climax.  It  was 
long  after  Lee's  surrender  and  the  end  of  war ; 
and,  it  is  supposed,  all  the  historians  had  gathered 
all  the  material  for  their  literary  works,  (which  is  to 
be  regretted,  as  it  has  fallen  to  my  lot  to  record  it, 
which  is  the  penalty  for  being  so  dilatory  in  getting 
this  work  out,)  as  none  of  them  have  ever  said  a  word 
about  it,  though  they  should,  however,  write  out  new 
editions.  He  conceived  an  idea  to  perpetuate  his 
non-engineering  skill,  by  detailing  nearly  the  whole 
of  his  brigade,  for  several  days,  to  build  a  large  fort 
in  a  hollow,  with  the  embrasures  in  the  rear,  at  Black's 
and  White's  Station,  on  the  Southside  railroad. 
If  history  fails  to  record  it  yet,  as  long  as  the  last 
man  of  this  brigade  lives,  his  fame  will  not  have 
died  out. 

On  the  night  of  the  5th  of  December,  the  regiment 
had  on  picket  one  hundred  and  fourteen  men  and 
two  commissioned  officers.  They  captured  five 
rebels;  one  was  an  orderly,  one  a  commissary,  one 
a  second  sergeant,  belonging  to  the  59th  Virginia, 
Bushrod  Johnson's  division  of  A.  P.  Hill's  corps, 
and  two  were  privates  belonging  to  the  Louisiana 
Tigers. 

Heavy  firing  on  both  sides  all  that  night  On 
the  8th  of  December,  Col.  Bolton  went  home  on  a 
leave  of  absence,  the  command  of  the  51st  devolving 
on  Major  Bolton. 

Gen.  Hartrauft  invited  all  the  officers  of  the  5 1st 


598     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

P.  V.  V.  to  dine  with  him  on  Christmas  day ;  some  few 
went,  but  most  of  them  were  debarred  from  accept 
ing  the  invitation  by  field  duties,  etc. 

The  officers  had  another  civility  extended  to  them 
a  few  days  after,  which  was  a  "  sell."  A  note  had 
been  sent  to  the  regiment,  apparently  from  a  clerk 
in  a  division  commissary  named  Eobert  Young, 
who  had  been  formerly  in  the  51st  New  York,  but 
not  re-enlisting.  He  had  been  discharged,  went 
home,  and  returned  as  a  citizen  to  clerk  for  the  di 
vision  commissary.  This  note  stated  that  he  had 
been  home  and  had  had  so  many  good  things  to  eat, 
that  now  being  returned  he  felt  a  great  sympathy  for 
the  poor  fellows  in  the  pits,  and  therefore  invited 
them  to  meet  at  his  tent  on  the  next  Saturday  night, 
and  partake  of  some  of  the  delicacies  of  the  season. 
A  few  of  the  officers  had  been  let  into  the  secret,  and 
they  helped  the  "  sell "  on  by  expressing  many  re 
grets  that  their  duties  prevented  them  from  going. 

As  the  time  had  arrived  to  take  their  departure 
to  "  Bob's  tent,"  they  assembled  at  the  Colonel's 
quarters.  The  colonel  being  one  "let  into  the 
secret,"  had  very  little  to  say.  One  officer,  little 
afraid  to  go  without  permission  to  do  so,  asked  the 
colonel  if  he  thought  he  could  be  spared,  as  so  many 
had  collected  to  go.  The  colonel  replied/'  Yes,  you 
can  go,  bat  don't  stay  too  long,  for  there  is  no  telling 
how  soon  all  hands  may  be  wanted."  Bob's  tent  was 
about  half  a  mile  off)  and  eleven  officers,  the  hospital 
steward,  and  Martin  Dunn,  the  one  who  had  written 
the  invitation,  started  in  company.  When  the  party 
had  got  a  few  yards  from  Fort  Morton,  one  of  them 
began  to  suspect  the  trick,  and  asked  for  the  note. 
It  was  produced,  some  declaring  that  that  was 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEKS.  599 

"  Bob's  "  writing,  others  had  their  doubts.  Finally, 
it  was  submitted  to  "  Dunnie  "  for  his  decision,  who 
of  all  others  the  most  anxious  to  make  a  sure  "sell," 
decided  emphatically  "it  is  Bob's  writing."  When 
the  party  got  near  "Bob's"  tent,  "Dunnie"  had  to 
leave,  as  the  surgeons  were  waiting  for  medicine 
that  could  only  be  got  at  the  division  doctor's. 
"Dunnie"  was  coaxed  to  "come  on,"  but  he  must 
go  for  his  medicine,  and  was  let  oft'  on  the  promise 
of  coming  back  as  soon  as  he  got  the  medicine.  The 
party  went  on  to  the  tent,  and  then  halted  to  consult, 
as  the  tent  didn't  have  a  very  inviting  look,  and  they 
appointed  a  couple  to  go  in,  but  not  to  "  let  on  to 
Bob,"  until  they  were  satisfied  that  all  was  right ; 
but  those  who  went  in  returned  in  a  few  minutes 
and  explained  all.  Bob  hadn't  returned  from  New 
York  vet,  and  Dunnie  had  got  up  the  affair  for  a 
"  sell."  The  party  returned  and  took  the  affair  in 
good  humor,  all  hands  enjoying  a  good  laugh. 


600      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 


PART    V,-1865, 


CHAPTEE  I. 

Shelling  Fort  Morton — Rebel  flag  of  truce — The  Peace  Com 
missioners — Conference  on  the  picket  line — Reception  of  the 
rebel  magnates  by  Genl.  Grant — Complimentary  enthusiasm 
on  all  sides — Failure  of  the  mission  Shelling  renewed — 
Narrow  escape  of  Capt.  Parker — Movement  to  the  left — 
Capture  and  re-capture  of  Fort  Steadman — Tom  Troy's 
visit  to  Petersburg — Capture  of  the  city — Last  march  south 
ward — End  of  the  war — Resignation  of  Gen.  Burnside — 
Last  order  of  Col.  Bolton — Return  home  of  the  regiment — 
Final  farewell. 

ON  January  3d,  1865,  the  rebels  began  early  m 
the  day  their  shelling;  their  whole  spite  seemed  to 
be  centred  on  Fort  Morton,  on  the  51st  P.  V.  V., 
which  partly  quartered  in  the  fort,  and  on  the  whole 
support.  Fort  Morton  had  a  battery  of  a  few  brass 
cohorns,  which  threw  a  24:  Ib.  shell,  situated  about 
fifty  yards  in  its  advance.  This  cohorn  battery  had 
the  exact  range  of  two  of  the  enemy's  forts,  and  as 
soon  as  the  enemy  began  their  shelling  they  opened 
on  them  in  reply  with  tremendous  vigor,  causing  the 
rebels  to  bring  in  play  every  gun  that  could  get  the 
range.  Towards  noon,  it  getting  most  too  hot,  Fort 
Morton  blazed  away  with  all  of  her  guns  and  mor 
tars,  and  an  attack  seemed  to  be  imminent.  The 
shelling  now  on  both  sides  became  terrific  and 
sublime.  One  200  Ib.  rebel  shell  entered  the  bomb 
proof  of  the  magazine,  but  did  no  particular  harm  ; 
one  fell  into  a  tent  that  had  just  been  vacated,  ex 
ploded  and  tore  the  tent  to  atoms.  Several  men  were 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  601 

wounded  with  pieces  of  shells.  Towards  Light  the 
shelling  slacked  up  a  little,  and  ceased  altogether 
after  dark. 

On  the  night  of  the  15th  January  a  severe  rain  set 
in,  and  flooded  the  tents  and  bomb-proofs  with  water 
to  the  depth  of  from  one  to  two  feet  deep.  Those 
who  had  no  tents,  and  only  bomb  proofs,  had  rain 
for  three  or  four  days  after  it  cleared  off;  they  being 
covered  with  several  feet  of  earth,  the  water  soaked 
through  and  made  everything  disagreeable  by  the 
water  dripping  and  draining  through  for  several 
days. 

On  Sunday,  the  28th  January,  1865,  a  white  flag 
was  displayed  in  front  of  the  enemy's  works  on  the 
Petersburg  road,  and  all  firing  on  both  sides  entirely 
ceased.  Capt.  Parker,  who  was  in  command  of  the 
brigade  picket  line  at  the  time,  was  at  the  quarters 
of  the  reserve  pickets  when  a  sergeant  belonging  to 
the  8th  Michigan  reported  to  him  that  a  flag  of  truce 
was  up,  and  he  went  out  to  answer  it.  After  getting 
on  the  parapet  of  the  works,  and  satisfying  himself 
that  it  was  a  duly  authorized  flag,  he  reported  the 
circumstance  to  headquarters.  Having  received  in 
structions  to  go  and  meet  it,  to  see  what  was  the 
desire,  he  divested  himself  of  his  arms,  and  met  the 
officer  on  the  road  midway  of  the  two  lines.  After 
passing  the  compliments  of  the  day,  Capt.  Parker 
inquired  the  cause  of  the  "  truce,"  and  informed  them 
that  he  had  met  him  for  the  purpose  of  receiving  any 
communication  he  had  to  offer.  The  rebel  officer 
replied  that  Lieut.  Col.  (rebel)  Hatch,  Assistant  Com 
missioner  of  Exchanges,  desired  an  interview  with 
the  chief  of  Gen.  Grant's  staff,  on  business  of  the 
greatest  importance,  and  wished  to  know  how  soon 


602      HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

the  captain  would  communicate  with  him.  He 
replied,  "  In  half  to  three-quarters  of  an  hour  ;"  they 
then  parted,  each  retiring  within  their  respective 
lines.  The  captain  again  made  his  report;  but  be 
fore  receiving  any  further  instructions  from  his 
superior  officers,  the  flag  advanced  again,  and  he 
met  it  again  ;  but  this  time  two  officers  accompanied 
the  flag.  One  was  an  old  rnan,  scarcely  able  to  walk, 
and  introduced  as  Alex.  H.  Stephens,  the  Vice- 
President  of  the  rebel  confederacy,  and  the  other  the 
Hon.  Mr.  Hunter,  formerly  U.  S.  senator  from  Vir 
ginia. 

Mr.  Stephens  informed  Capt.  Parker  that  he  and 
Mr.  Hunter  were  appointed  commissioners  of  peace, 
and  to  report  such  information  to  Gen.  Grant ;  they 
also  requested  him  to  inform  Gen.  Grant  that  they 
were  appointed  to  confer  with  Mr.  Lincoln,  and,  as 
the  James  river  was  ice-bound,  they  could  not  get 
down  that  way  to  Washington,  but  wanted  to  corne 
through  his  lines,  so  as  to  lose  no  time. 

The  captain  again  made  his  report  to  headquar 
ters,  when  Lieut.  Col.  Ely;  of  the  38th  Wisconsin, 
came  out  to  the  lines,  and  conferred  in  person  with 
the  commissioners. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  Gen.  Grant  at  this 
time  was  down  at  Fort  Fisher,  Wilmington,  N.  C.; 
consequently  nothing  could  be  done  until  he  returned. 
But  in  a  day  after  Gen.  Grant  was  on  the  spot,  ar 
rangements  were  entered  into  whereby  the  commis 
sioners  were  admitted  into  our  lines. 

From  the  moment  the  flag  of  truce  was  displayed 
the  works  of  both  lines  were  crowded  with  troops, 
and  the  enemy  and  our  men  watched  the  whole  pro 
ceeding  in  silence  until  its  import  was  made  manifest, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      603 

when,  as  if  with  one  accord,  the  two  lines  of  troops 
yelled  with  delight  at  the  prospects  of  coming  peace. 
From  the  right  to  the  left  of  the  lines,  cheer  upon 
cheer  was  given  with  a  hearty  will,  each  party  trying 
to  cheer  the  loudest.  "  Peace  on  the  brain  "  seemed 
now  to  have  spread  like  a  contagion. 

Lieutenants,  captains,  majors,  lieutenant-colonels, 
colonels,  brigadier-generals  and  major-generals  were 
to  be  seen  flying  on  horseback  in  all  directions,  to 
catch  a  glimpse  of  the  gentlemen  who  were  appa 
rently  to  bring  so  unexpected  a  peace. 

At  4  p.  M.  of  the  ever  memorable  Sunday,  Capt. 
Parker  of  the  51st  P.  V.  V.  was  relieved  from  picket 
by  Capt.  Win.  W.  Owens,  of  Co.  D,  who  also  had 
the  charge  of  the  brigade  picket  line.  Shortly  after 
Capt.  Owens  took  command,  the  flag  was  again  dis 
played  by  an  officer  on  the  rebel  pits  ;  Capt.  Owens 
immediately  answered  it  by  taking  his  white  hand 
kerchief  which  had  the  "  starry  banner  "  in  bold  re 
lief  on  each  of  the  four  corners,  placing  his  "  truce  " 
with  the  four  beautiful,  miniature  flags  on  an  iron 
ramrod,  sallied  forth  to  meet  his  "  quondam  friend." 
After  passing  the  compliments  of  the  day,  they  en 
tered  into  the  "  peace  "  business,  which  had  been  so 
long  getting  arranged. 

It  was  seitled  that  the  commissioners  were  to  be 
admitted  into  our  lines  at  between  7  and  10  A.  M.  of 
Jan.  30th,  but  as  it  took  so  much  "red  tape"  they 
did  not  get  through.  Troops  had  assembled  in  a 
surging  mass  to  witness  the  entrance  to  our  lines ; 
they  had  corne  from  great  distances  and  from  all 
quarters,  from  City  Point  to  Ream's  station,  but  only 
to  meet  with  a  disappointment. 

Then  Capt.  Owens  again  me.t  the  truce,  when  it 


604     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   EEGIMENT 

was  settled  that  they  should  be  admitted  at  5  P.  M. 
of  the  same  day.  The  eager  troops  got  the  infor 
mation  and  they  lingered  around  until  that  time  only 
to  be  disappointed  again.  But  at  5  P.  M.,  of  the 
31st,  Messrs.  Stephens,  Lieut. -Col.  Hatch,  and  the 
Hon.  Mr.  Hunter,  accompanied  by  another  gentle 
man,  servants,  trunks,  &c.,  were  admitted  to  the  pro 
posed  conference.  Another  vast  assembly  thronged 
the  road  and  the  adjoining  fields,  and  the  scene 
became  very  exciting.  The  rebel  breastworks  were 
crowded  with  ladies  and  soldiers;  our  works  with 
soldiers  only.  About  4  p.  M.,  a  large,  close  carriage 
was  seen  wending  its  way  from  the  *'  Cockade  City  " 
towards  the  rear  of  the  enemy's  works  on  the  Peters 
burg  road  ;  it  was  watched  with  interest  by  all  eyes 
along  both  lines.  The  carriage  halted  at  the  works 
and  its  inmates  descended  the  steps,  but  as  the  last 
one  reached  the  ground  the  rebel  soldiery  burst  out 
with  one  accord  and  cheered  the  distinguished  party, 
while  the  thousands  of  ladies  waved  their  snowy 
handkerchiefs  in  honor  of  the  occasion.  Slowly  the 
commissioners  crossed  their  line.  On  our  side,  in 
the  road  at  the  point  occupied  by  the  51st  P.  V.  V., 
Gen.  Grant  had  several  beautiful  ambulances  in 
waiting  to  receive  and  convey  the  distinguished 
gentlemen  to  City  Point,  where  also  was  in  waiting 
a  steamer  to  take  them  to  Fortress  Monroe. 

As  the  commissioners  entered  our  picket-pits  those 
on  picket  welcomed  them  with  long  and  loud  cheer 
ing,  and  was  taken  up  by  the  thousands  assembled 
in  the  rear. 

As  our  pickets  cheered,  the  enemy  with  the  ladies 
on  their  works,  proposed  and  gave  "three  cheers 
and  a  tiger  for  the  whole  Yankee  army."  Our 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  605 

pickets  acknowledged  the  compliment  and  gave  the 
same  for  "the  whole  of  the  Confederate  army." 
After  silence  was  restored  and  while  all  were  on 
their  works  watching  with  interest  the  movements 
of  the  commissioners,  our  boys  proposed  ''three 
cheers  for  the  ladies  of  Petersburg,"  which  was 
given  with  a  deafening  yell  and  was  taken  up  by  the 
rebel  troops  with  equal  enthusiasm.  The  ladies  ac 
knowledged  the  compliment  by  the  waving  of  their 
white  pocket-handkerchiefs.  By  the  time  these 
compliments  were  passed,  the  commissioners  had 
reached  our  main  line,  and  as  they  began  to  cross 
over  it,  cheers  upon  cheers  rent  the  air,  by  our  own 
troops  and  the  enemy,  until  the  rolling  vehicles 
were  out  of  sight.  The  works  of  the  main  line  where 
it  crossed  the  road  had  been  slightly  levelled  down 
to  pass  the  gentlemen  through.  Mr.  Stephens  seemed 
to  be  very  feeble  and  very  much  excited,  and  walked 
very  slowly  to  the  ambulance,  where  he  had  to  be 
assisted  to  get  in. 

The  result  of  this  conference  with  Mr.  Lincoln 
was  a  total  failure  to  negotiate  for  peace,  the  com 
missioners  asking  for  a  recognition  of  their  Con 
federacy  and  its  independence.  President  Lincoln 
demanded  the  disbandment  of  the  whole  rebel  army 
and  the  acknowledgment  of  the  supremacy  of  the 
Constitution  and  Jaws  of  the  United  States,  and  for 
the  return  of  the  Southern  people  to  their  former  al 
legiance;  on  no  other  tenns  would  he  treat  for 

o 

peace.  This  they  emphatically  refused  to  accede 
to,  and  the  negotiations  were  at  an  end  and  the  com 
missioners  returned  home,  and  President  Lincoln  to 
Washington. 

On  Feb.  1st,  1865,  orders  were  issued  to  be  ready 


606     HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

to  move  at  a  moment's  notice.  The  order  to  march 
did  not  come,  but  was  kept  a  standing  one. 

On  the  3d,  the  enemy  opened  all  along  their  lines 
with  artillery  and  musketry,  and  the  firing  continued 
throughout  the  entire  day  and  night,  when  at  day 
light  it  ceased  entirely  and  the  boys  of  the  51st  P. 
V.  V.  and  those  of  the  56th  (rebel)  Virginia  mingled 
together  throughout  the  entire  day,  between  the  two 
lines,  exchanging  tobacco,  coffee,  playing  cards,  &c. 

On  the  5th  and  6th.  a  battle  was  in  progress  on 
the  left  and  caused  quite  a  commotion  along  the 
whole  line.  The  51st  fell  in  under  arms,  where  it 
remained  until  the  morning  of  the  7th,  then  it  broke 
ranks  and  went  to  its  quarters  with  injunctions  to 
be  ready  to  "fall  in"  at  any  ir.oment.  The  roar  of 
artillery  was  incessant,  but  an  attack  was  not  ex 
pected,  as  there  was  a  heavy  fall  of  rain,  hail,  and 
sleet  which  froze  as  fast  as  it  fell,  making  the  ground 
too  slippery  to  stand  upon. 

Officers  and  men  were  now  receiving  leaves  of  ab 
sence  and  furloughs  whenever  occasion  offered,  as 
there  was  no  prospect  of  an  advanoe  being  made 
any  time  soon. 

The  enemy  indulged  in  another  treat  of  shelling 
on  the  14th  Feb.,  doing  a  considerable  deal  of  dam 
age  to  the  quarters  of  the  officers  and  men.  One 
shell  dropped  into  a  tent  of  Co.  C,  exploding,  tear 
ing  it  to  atoms,  and  blowing  the  "  kitchen  utensils" 
high  in  the  air.  Another  dropped  on  the  chimney 
of  Dr.  Kineholdt's  bomb-proof,  knocking  the  whole 
thing  down ;  another  dropped  on  Col.  Bolton's 
quarters,  tearing  nearly  the  whole  roof  off;  another 
dropped  on  Lieut.  Smith's  adjutant's  office,  smashing- 
things  in  general ;  another  dropped  on  the  rear-end 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      607 

of  Capt.  Parker's  quarters,  and  after  reaching  the 
logs  it  exploded,  displacing  the  logs  blowing  off  all 
the  plastering,  and  filling  the  place  with  smoke  and 
earth.  Capt.  Parker  was  lying  on  his  bunk  at  the 
time ;  a  private,  Job  Milne,  sitting  on  the  edge  of  it, 
was  blown  to  the  front  of  the  quarters,  a  distance  of 
not  less  than  twelve  feet,  and  strange  to  say  neither  of 
them  were  harmed  in  the  least,  excepting  a  peculiar 
sensation  felt  in  the  head,  caused  by  the  violent  con 
cussion.  Another  dropped  on  the  quarters  of  Co.  E 
and  G,  knocking  off  about  two  cart-loads  of  dirt,  dis 
placing  the  logs  and  filling  the  place  with  it. 

Dangerous  as  this  constant  shelling  was,  it  was 
impossible  to  keep  the  men  in  their  bombproofs, 
and  it  is  a  miracle  how  so  many  escaped  death  or 
wounds. 

In  the  front  of  Col.  Bolton's  quarter?,  but  in  its 
rear  from  the  enemy,  was  a  high  pile  of  earth  which 
had  been  thrown  up  from  a  traverse  that  overlooked 
the  colonel's  quarters  and  the  fort.  On  this  mound 
would  congregate  a  large  crowd  of  the  51st,  among 
whom  was  Lieut.  Valentine  Stoeker,  Co.  B,  more 
familiarly  known  in  the  regiment  as  ''  Daddy" 
Stoeker.  As  soon  as  the  shelling  'would  begin 
"  Daddy  "  would  mount  the  ''  pile  "  and  watch  the 
shells  in  their  descent;  and  in  a  strain  of  laughter  to 
see  the  scampering  of  the  men,  "  Daddy  "  would  yell 
out,  "  here  comes  another  one  from  the  woods  on 
the  right,  look  out !"  thus  keeping  the  boys  constantly 
running  from  one  place  to  another  half  the  time  when 
no  shells  were  in  the  air,  but  as  they  were  falling  gen 
erally  pretty  fast  they  always  obeyed  the  cry  of  the 
boy  that  the  "wolf "was  coming,  not  daring  like 
those  in  the  fable  to  doubt  the  warning.  The  scene 


608     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY  FIRST   REGIMENT 

would  cause  a  big  crowd  to  gather  on  the  "  pile  " 
with  "  Daddy,"  when  the  enemy  would  begin  to  shell 
them  offthe  place,  but  never  successfully,  for  the  boys 
would  watch  the  shells  in  their  flight  and  could  tell, 
when  they  were  half  a  mile  high,  near  the  spot  they 
would  fall.  About  the  only  thing  the  men  were 
afraid  of  would  be  the  shell  exploding  before  it 
reached  the  ground. 

It  was  generally  believed  that  the  rebels  were 
evacuating  Petersburg  on  the  22d  of  February,  as 
our  batteries  were  shelling  them  all  day  at  a  fearful 
rate,  and  receiving  very  feeble  replies  from  them. 
Our  batteries  all  fired  shotted  salutes  at  noon,  in 
honor  of  the  day,  being  Washington's  birth  anni 
versary. 

Nothing  of  any  particular  interest  occurred  during 
the  remainder  of  the  month  of  February,  but  the 
incessant  shelling  day  and  night. 

March  brought  the  "beginning  of  the  end." 
Orders  were  issued  to  the  different  regiments  to  send 
all  their  unnecessary  baggage  to  City  Point  to  be 
shipped  to  Alexandria  for  storage. 

The  2d,  5th  and  6th  Corps  had  vacated  the  works 
on  the  left  of  the  9th,  and  started  off  still  further  to 
the  left.  The  2d,  5th  and  part  of  the  6th  Corps  made 
a  foray  on  the  enemy's  right,  while  the  remainder,  the 
greater  part  of  the  6th  and  the  whole  of  the  9th 
Corps,  held  the  entire  line  from  Petersburg  to  near 
Hancock's  station,  this  occurring  on  the  18th  of 
March. 

On  the  19th,  the  enemy  in  our  front  suspecting  a 
move,  arid  in  order^to  feel  the  strength  of  our  lines, 
opened  on  Fort  Morton  a  terrible  fire,  which  con 
tinued  till  midnight.  One  man,  John  Ornlor,  Co.  J, 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      609 

was  severely  wounded  and  sent  to  the  hospital.  The 
51st  was  in  line  of  battle  all  day. 

The  22d  of  March  was  very  quiet  in  our  front. 
The  enemy  and  our  men  met  between  the  two  lines, 
having  quite  a  sociable  time  and  a  hunt.  The  two 
parties  "scared  up"  three  rabbits,  and  a  chase  en 
sued,  the  "Yanks"  and  "Johnnies"  hallooing  to 
each  other  "there  he  goes,  Johnny;"  "there  he 
goes,  Billy  Yanks;"  "  hit  him,  Johnny;"  "hit  him, 
Yanks,"  &c.  A  Yank  would  run  against  a  Johnny 
and  knock  him  over;  the  Johnnies  would  upset  a 
Yank,  and  all  hands  laugh  and  take  it  all  in  good 
feeling.  The  Johnnies  caught  one,  and  the  Yanks 
killed  two  and  made  the  Eebs  a  present  of  them. 

The  25th  of  March  inaugurated  the  downfall  of 
the  confederacy.  The  rebels  about  3  A.  M.  stealthily 
crept  upon  our  works,  and  sent  a  couple  of  their 
men  into  our  picket  line  in  front  of  Fort  Steadman, 
apparently  to  give  themselves  up  as  deserters.  They 
told  the  pickets  that  a  whole  brigade,  officers  and 
men,  were  ready  to  come  into  our  lines  to  give  them 
selves  up,  and  if  they  would  promise  not  to  fire  on 
them  they  would  come.  The  pickets  consented,  and 
at  a  certain  signal  that  had  previously  been  agreed 
upon  being  given,  the  whole  brigade  came  in.  As 
soon  as  in,  the  enemy  captured  the  pickets,  then 
proceeding  very  quietly  to  Fort  Steadman,  where 
the  troops  were  in  their  quarters  asleep,  they  began 
an  indiscriminate  massacre  of  the  entire  garrison, 
shooting  those  that  tried  to  escape,  and  bayoneting 
those  who  were  asleep  in  their  bunks,  capturing 
none. 

Soon  after  they  secured  our  picket  and  main 
line,  they  occupied  two  large  forts  nearly  in  front 


610     HISTOKY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   EEGIMENT 

of  Gen.  0.  B.  Wilcox's  headquarters,  which  was  to 
the  right  of  Fort  Morton,  and  turned  the  guns  of 
Fort  Steadrnan  on  to  the  main  line  and  against  Fort 
Morton.  The  battle  was  now  assuming  a  formida 
ble  shape,  troops  were  all  needed  where  they  were, 
and  the  prospect  was  that  the  rebels  were  to  have 
it  their  own  way.  Gen.  Grant  had  sent  cars  up  to 
the  far  left  for  one  division  of  the  6th  Corps  to  re 
inforce  this  part  of  the  line. 

Gen.  Ilartranft,  vdio  now  commanded  a  division 
of  all  new  recruits,  was  encamped  about  one  mile  to 
the  left  of  Fort  Steadman,  and  getting  information  of 
what  was  going  on  formed  his  division  and  double 
quicked  it  down  to  the  battle  ground,  where  he  ar 
rived  just  in  time  to  prevent  the  enemy  from  cap 
turing  Meade's  station  with  its  valuable  stores  of 
supplies.  Daylight  was  not  very  distant  and  Gen. 
II.  was  about  to  attempt  the  recapture  of  the  lost 
lines  with  his  division  of  recruits  when  he  received 
orders  not  to  try  it,  but  to  wait  for  the  arrival  of  re 
inforcements  from  the  6th  Corp?.  The  general 
waited  but  not  long,  daylight  was  near,  but  it  was 
very  dark  still,  and  he  determined  to  make  the 
attempt  by  himself,  if  the  reinforcements  did  not 
soon  come.  After  waiting  a  few  minutes  longer, 
and  making  himself  acquainted  with  the  position  of 
the  enemy,  he  quietly  got  his  division  in  line  of 
battle  and  commanded  a  charge,  he  leading  it  in 
person,  that  astonished  the  enemy  and  they  fled  in 
a  panic,  but  their  loss  was  heavy,  while  Gen.  Il's 
was  not  over  130  in  all.  He  had  captured  upwards 
of  3,000  rebels,  among  which  was  Maj-Gen.  Kansom 
of  Beauregard's  command. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  611 

The  enemy  bad  captured  Gen.  McLaughlin,  com 
manding  the  1st  Division,  9th  Corps. 

The  loss  of  the  51st  was  five  killed — three  of 
which  was  of  Co.  F,  and  two  of  Co.  B. 

After  daylight,  troops  began  to  visit  the  bloody 
field.  The  rebel  dead  laid  thick  all  over  the  ground, 
with  here  and  there  one  of  ours.  It  was  truly  a  sick 
ening  sight;  but  it  only  went  to  show  how  fiercely 
the  raw  recruits  had  made  their  charge.  This  one 

O 

act  should  have  secured  ITartranft  a  full  major-gen 
eral's  commission  had  justice  been  done  him. 

On  the  27th,  Gen.  Sheridan's  command  arrived, 
and  proceeded  on  to  the  extreme  left,  which  indi 
cated  that  the  spring  campaign  had  fairly  opened. 

On  the  28th,  Col.  Bolton  gave  orders  to  "fall  in" 
in  the  works  supporting  Fort  Morton.  The  51st 
did  so,  and  remained  in  line  all  day  and  night  under 
a  hot  fire  from  the  rebel  batteries.  In  the  night 
the  rebels  made  a  simultaneous  attack  along  the 
whole  front,  driving  in  our  pickets  in  face  of  Fort 
Morton.  This  picket  line  was  under  the  command 
of  Lieut.  Lewis  Patterson,  who  struggled  hard  with 
his  men  (114)  to  keep  them  at  their  posts,  but,  being 
principally  drafted  men  and  substitutes  who  never 
had  been  in  an  engagement  before  that  night,  it  was 
impossible  for  one  man  to  control  their  panic- 
stricken  movements.  He  did  his  duty  nobly,  but 
all  in  vain.  The  line  under  his  command  was  about 
four  hundred  yards  long,  and  while  he  would  be  at 
one  end  of  it,  cheering  up  his  men  and  begging 
them  for  God's  sake  not  to  desert  him,  they  were 
doing  that  very  thing  at  the  other  end.  By  the 
time  he  had  gone  along  the  line  two  or  three  times 
he  found  the  pits  empty,  excepting  one  post  of  four 


612     HISTOKY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

men,  who  told  him  that  they  would  stay  at  their 
post  as  long  as  he  would,  and  that  he  might  depend 
on  it  that  they  would  Lot  leave  the  pits  until  he  left 
or  was  captured. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  their  names  were  not  all 
retained.  Only  one,  that  of  John  M.  Engle,  is  pre 
served  ;  but  they  were  all  veterans. 

Col.  Bolton  was  not  long  in  making  the  discovery 
that  the  men  had  left  the  picket  line,  and  every  man 
that  had  came  in  was  hunted  up,  and  the  veterans 
that  could  be  spared  from  the  support  of  the  fort 
were  sent  out  along  with  them,  with  the  injunction  to 
shoot  the  first  man  that  attempted  to  leave  again. 
It  was  now  about  midnight,  and  the  fighting  was 
severe.  The  bullets  and  the  shells  filled  the  air 
above,  below,  and  all  around.  The  detail  was  put 
under  the  charge  of  Sergt.  George  W.  Patterson,  a 
"vet.,"  who  was  to  take  them  out  to  Lieut.  Patter 
son.  The  sergeant,  to  punish  the  recruits  for  their 
cowardice,  instead  of  taking  them  out  through  the 
traverses,  took  them  out  over  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  where  they  were  exposed  to  the  flying  mis 
siles  until  they  reached  their  posts.  Sergt.  Patterson 
turned  them  over  to  the  lieutenant,  who  posted  them 
with  a  veteran  on  each  post — and  they  kept  there  too  ! 
On  the  29th  the  fighting  on  the  left  was  terrific,  but 
at  evening  had  quieted  down  somewhat ;  and  after 
dark  the  olst's  pickets  were  again  assaulted,  but 
held  their  part  of  the  line.  Nearly  half  of  the  8th 
Michigan,  which  joined  the  right  of  the  51st,  and 
all  the  109th  New  York,  the  left,  cleared  out  and 
went  into  their  carnp;  but  ere  long  they  were  sent 


A  heavy  rain  set  in  at  2  A.  M.  of  the  30th  and 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      613 

dampened  the  "heated  ardor  of  the  enemy.  He 
ceased  his  assaults  through  the  remainder  of  the 
night,  but  kept  up  a  destructive  fire  with  all  kinds 
of  arms. 

On  the  31st,  the  enemy  began  again  to  show  some 
uneasiness,  and  in  the  afternoon  commenced  shell 
ing  us  and  Fort  Morton  in  splendid  style.  Finally, 
Morton  opened,  with  her  cohorns,  rifled  guns  and 
heavy  mortars,  causing  the  rebels  to  concentrate 
their  fire  from  a  half  dozen  forts  on  her,  making  it 
hot,  hotter,  hottest  !  The  last  battle  preceding  the 
downfall  of  Richmond  and  Petersburg  was  now 
inaugurated.  It  continued  in  fury  and  increased  in 
vigor  until  April  2d,  at  midnight,  when  the  enemy 
ceased  firing  altogether. 

The  51st,  for  the  last  three  days  and  nights,  was 
in  support  of  Fort  Morton,  and  the  shower  of  shells 
from  the  enemy's  works  served  to  keep  them  fully 
awake.  Soon  after  midnight  huge  fires  were  seen 
springing  up  in  all  directions  through  the  doomed 
city.  About  2  A.M.  of  the  3d  of  April,  Fort  Dar 
ling,  at  Drury's  Bluffs,  blew  up  with  a  heavy  re 
port.  Everything  indicated  the  evacuation,  and 
Col.  Bolton  selected  a  daring  man,  Thomas  Troy, 
but  better  known  in  the  regiment  as  "  Scout,"  at 
1  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  3d,  and  asked  him 
if  he  was  willing  to  make  an  attempt  to  go  into 
Petersburg  and  see  if  it  was  evacuated.  The  man 
replied  "He  would  go."  The  colonel  told  him  to 
take  off'  his  equipments,  and  leave  them  and  his  gun 
in  his  quarters.  Tom  said  "No  ;  while  he  had  his 
gun  he  was  sure  of  pinning  one  man  before  they 
could  take  him  !" 

Col.  B.  consented  for  Tom  to  take  his  gun  along, 


614:      HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

and  he  started.  In  less  than  an  hour  he  returned, 
with  the  pleasing  intelligence  that  the  enemy  hadn't 
all  left  yet,  but  they  were. getting  out  of  it  as  fast 
as  they  could.  Tom  had  certainly  been  in  the  city, 
and  long  enough  to  get  a  ketle  tight. 

Col.  Bolton  now  ordered  the  skirmishers  to  ad 
vance  into  the  rebel  works.  They  sent  into  camp 
for  the  colonel  to  send  them  the  colors.  He  re 
fused,  but  they  proceeded  on  and  were  the  first  to 
enter  the  city.  They  were  in  there  half  an  hour 
before  any  other  troops,  but  lost  the  credit  because 
they  did  not  have  their  regimental  colors  to  erect 
there.  They  remained  until  daylight,  and  while  in 
town  they  secured  some  mementoes  of  the  event — 
among  which  was  a  bell  they  took  off  of  a  hose- 
carriage,  and  which  is  now  in  the  possession  of 
Gen.  William  J.  Bolton. 

Soon  after  daylight,  Col.  Bolton  gave  orders  to 
pack  up.  The  regiment  struck  tents,  formed  on  the 
color  line,  and  came  to  a  "  rest,"  at  which  it  lay 
until  12,  noon.  The  corps  then  formed  in  column 
and  marched  into  the  city.*  The  1st  Brigade 

*  The  list  below  embraces  the  casualties  from  the  17th  June 
to  August,  18th,  1864,  and  then  from  November  29th,  1864,  up 
to  the  fall  of  Petersburg,  April  3d,  1865.  It  is  far  from 
complete,  but  the  best  that  could  be  reached. 

Co.  A. — Killed — Private  Levi  Mattis,  Private  Adam  W. 
Yeager.  Wounded — Capt.  Jos.  K.  Bolton,  Privates  Simon 
Dobson,  Lewis  Myers,  Lucius  Lake,  Jonathan  Weeber.  Cap 
tured — Nelson  Y.  Mattis. 

Co.  B. — Killed — Private  John  F.  Ackerman.  Wounded — 
Privates  Henry  Smith,  Gabriel  Fay. 

Co.  C. — Killed — Corp.  Wm.  Kooker,  Corp.  Joseph  Cornog, 
Privates  Henry  Fry,  John  McFaul,  Frank  Hendricks,  Henry 
Gunter.  Wounded — Sergt.  Jno.  W.  Fair,  Privates  Wm.  Hotch- 
kiss,  Henry  Erhard,  J.  M.  Favinger,  Joseph  Green. 

Co.  D. — Killed — Sergt.  Wm.  Dignan,  Corp.  James  McKenna. 
Wounded — Corp.  Jno.  B.  Godley,  John  Roshon,  Everett  H. 
Staunton. 

Co.  E. — Killed — David  Lenhard.    Wounded — Sergt.  George 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      615 

marched  through  to  the  upper  end  at  Halifax,  where 
it  remained  until  the  5th,  when  the  regiment  left  at 
1  p.  M.  for  Sutherland's  Station  on  the  Southside 
railroad,  where  Gen.  Grant  had  his  headquarters. 
We  reached  here  at  10  p.  M.  of  the  same  day.  After 
marching  into  the  woods,  halting  in  column,  and 
coming  to  a  front,  Col.  Bolton  gave  the  command, 
"  By  the  right  of  companies,  to  the  rear  into  col 
umn.  Battalion,  right  face — file  right — march  !  ' 
And  away  they  went,  through  the  dark,  over 
stumps,  logs,  brush,  briars,  holes,  cord- wood  and 
rail  piles,  into  a  peach  orchard,  when  he  commanded 
halt!  and  said,  "Now  boys,  make  yourselves  com 
fortable  for  the  night."  Fires  were  first  made,  and 
the  little  light  they  afforded  assisted  in  putting 
up  such  places  as  each  one  wished  to  erect  for  the 
night.  By  li  o'clock  every  man  was  down  and 
asleep.  When  orders  came  to  "fall  in"  for  a  night's 
inarch,  that  "fall  in"  grated  harshly  on  the  ear,  for 
what  necessity  was  there  now  for  a  night's  march  ? 
The  rebellion  was  over — Lee  couldn't  get  away — 
Sherman  would  head  him  off;  and  those  were  the 
thoughts  and  expressions  of  many. 

At  fifteen  minutes  past  11  the  51st  was  groping 

Dichl,  Corp.  Thos.  S.  Mauck,  Privates  Reuben  Kline,  John 
Rahback. 

Co.  F.  —  Killed—  Lieut.  Allen  H.  Filhnan,  Corp.  Ed. 
R.  Worth,  Corp.  Josiah  Wood,  Privates  Chas.  Wagoner, 
Samuel  Gillespie. 

Co.  G. — Killed — John  Blyler,  Bartly  McIIarney.  Wounded 
— Daniel  Sheets,  Jeremiah  Troy. 

Co.  H. — Killed — Wni.  Shriner,  Joseph  Pareby.  Wounded — 
Capt.  George  Shorkley,  Jno.  A.  Nieman. 

Co.  I. — Killed — Sergt.  Stephen  S.  Davis,  Private  Robt.  K. 
Felton.  Wounded — Sergt.  Geo.  Carney,  Corp.  John  George, 
Thos.  Herdenstine. 

Co.  K.— Killed— Thos.  C.  Pierce,  James  Gibson.  Wounded 
— Lieut.  Jacob  Fryburger,  John  Harris,  Daniel  Hoover,  Win. 
M.  Stuttsman,  Daniel  Sleeks,  N.  Vancurm. 


616      HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

its  way  for  near  a  mile  through  the  dark  woods,  as 
black  as  midnight,  on  its  way  to  Wilson's  station,  on 
the  Southside  railroad,  where  it  arrived  on  the 
evening  of  the  6th,  and  went  into  camp  on  the  rebel 
Col.  Hobbs'  plantation,  along  the  road  and  within 
fifty  yards  of  the  mansion.  Next  morning,  the  7th, 
Col.  Bolton,  with  his  field  and  staff,  put  up  their 
quarters  on  the  lawn,  within  a  few  feet  of  the  high 
steps  of  the  mansion,  much  to  the  dissatisfaction  of 
the  Hobbs  family ;  but  the  place  just  suited  Col.  Bol 
ton,  and  that  had  to  be  the  spot. 

A  "  starry  banner  "  of  the  right  kind  floated  from 
the  roof  of  the  verandah  of  the  mansion.  Upon  in 
quiry  how  it  came  to  be  put  up,  Mrs.  Hobbs  replied 
"  that  a  Yankee  General  by  the  name  of  Hartranft  had 
given  it  to  them  yesterday,  as  he  went  by  with  his 
army,  and  waited  until  he  saw  that  we  put  it  up, 
and  told  us  not  to  take  it  down." 

Col.  Bolton  put  up  his  regimental  colors  in  front 
of  his  quarters,  much  to  the  dislike  and  disgust  of 
of  the  dear  old  "  Secesh  "  soul.  At  11  p.  M.  of  the  9th 
we  packed  up  and  moved  further  up  the  Southside 
railroad  to  Black's  and  White's  station,  to  picket  the 
railroad.  The  regiment  arrived  there  the  next  day, 
but  did  not  go  into  camp.  All  the  companies  were 
sent  out  separately  to  guard  the  railroad,  occupying 
a  line  of  near  two  miles,  where  they  remained  until 
the  20th.  General  Burnside  resigned  his  command 
15th  April,  1865,  while  the  51st  lay  at  this  place. 

On  the  21st  the  companies  all  again  assembled  at 
the  station  to  rejoin  their  colors,  and  went  into  camp. 
While  lying  here  the  officers  of  the  51st  P.  V.  pre 
sented  Gen.  Hartranft  with  a  splendid  gold  watch. 
The  General  received  it  with  a  short  but  appropriate 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      617 

patriotic  speech,  at  the  conclusion  of  which  he 
thanked  them  kindly  for  the  testimonial.  The  reg 
iment  formed  three  sides  of  a  square  previous  to 
the  presentation.  After  the  ceremony  was  over, 
"three  cheers  for  Gen.  Hartranft"  was  given  with  a 
will.  It  was  here  that  the  assassination  of  President 
Lincoln  was  officially  announced  to  the  regiment, 
and  the  indignation  knew  no  bounds.  Men  of  all 
parties  united  in  calling  it  one  of  the  most  dastardly 
acts  ever  perpetrated  in  any  country. 

The  1st  brigade  (in  which  was  the  51st),  while 
lying  at  this  station,  was  detailed  to  build  a  large 
fort  to  commemorate  the  name  of  Samuel  Harriman, 
the  colonel  commanding  the  1st  brigade,  but  the 
poor  fellow  didn't  gel;  his  fort  done,  as  the  Secretary 
of  War  ordered  the  9th  Corps  to  the  vicinity  of 
"Washington,  D.  C.  What  he  will  do  now  to  per 
petuate  his  memory  is  hard  to  say,  but  his  heroism 
on  the  night  of  April  2d  will  never  be  forgotten  by 
Lieut.  Patterson,  who  commanded  at  Fort  Morton, 
and  the  51st  P.  V.  V.,  who  supported  the  lieutenant 
when  he  (the  colonel)  could  not  induce  the  lieutenant 
to  spike  his  mortars,  and  get  his  horses  to  haul  the 
guns  out  of  the  fort,  while  the  rebels  were  still  three 
hundred  yards  distant  and  trying  to  get  still  further 
off.  He  certainly  can't  say  the  whole  of  the  Latin 
phrase  to  his  friends,  without  blushing,  "  Veni,  vidi, 
vici." 

On  the  20th  the  51st  P.  Y.  V.  left  Black's  and 
White's  station,  on  the  South  Side  railroad,  and 
marched  for  City  Point,  where  it  embarked  on  a 
steamer  for  Washington,  D.  C.,  arriving  there  on 
the  24th.  After  the  steamer  arrived,  it  lay  in  the 
stream  awaiting  orders,  which  soon  came  for  it  to 

27* 


618     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

land  ns  at  Alexandria,  Ya.  After  landing,  the  regi 
ment  marched  to  the  outskirts  of  the  city,  and  en 
camped,  about  a  mile  from  it,  in  a  woods,  where  it 
lay  until  next  day,  the  25th,  when  it  moved  and 
located  near  Fort  Lyons,  remaining  there  until  the 
next  clay,  when  it  again  moved  off'  to  Tenallytown, 
arriving  a  little  before  dark,  and  went  into  camp  for 
the  night,  along  the  roadside.  Next  day,  the  27th, 
it  proceeded  into  the  woods  to  the  right  of  where 
the  regiment  had  lain  the  night  before,  and  after 
cutting  out  the  brush  and  clearing  up  the  trash,  it 
"  quartered,"  and  sat  down  to  work  on  the  muster- 
rolls.  It  remained  here  until  the  1st  of  May,  when 
it  again  marched  back  to  Alexandria  and  encamped 
near  Gen.  Curtin's  headquarters,  where  it  rested  for 
a  couple  of  days;  then  it  marched  out  about  three 
miles  on  the  Mt.  Vernon  road,  and  went  into  camp 
•under  the  appellation  of  being  in  the  "Provisional 
Brigade,"  and  3d  Division,  9th  Corps.  This  site 
was  called  "Camp  Andrew  Johnson,"  in  honor  of 
the  President  of  the  United  States. 

On  the  25th  of  May,  1865,  while  lying  at  this 
place,  the  51st  P.  V.  V.  was  highly  honored  by  a 
visit  from  that  estimable  lady,  Mrs.  Harry  Hill,  of 
Norristown.  She  spent  the  afternoon  and  evening 
with  the  regiment.  Our  men  complimented  her  by 
an  illumination  of  the  whole  camp  in  the  evening, 
and  the  drum  corps  of  the  regiment  gave  a  serenade. 
After  which  she  received  another  serenade  from  the 
brass  band  belonging  to  the  1st  brigade.  She  then 
took  her  departure  for  the  night,  bidding  them  all  a 
heartfelt  farewell. 

On  the  27th  May  the  regiment  moved  into  Alex 
andria,  at  the  upper  end  of  King  street,  and  went 
into  camp.  It  was  detailed  to  do  the  patrolling  of 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  619 

the  city.  Col.  Wm.  J.  Bolton  was  appointed  Military 
Governor  of  Alexandria  ;  and  Lieut.-Col.  Wm.  Alle- 
baugh,  exchanged  as  a  prisoner,  (having  been  cap 
tured  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.  on  the  12th  of  May, 
1864,)  now  commanded  the  regiment. 

Nearly  all  the  drafted  recruits  of  the  51st  P.  V.  V. 
were  mustered  out  June  1st,  1865,  and  sent,  under 
the  command  of  Capt.  J.  P.  Brooke,  to  llarrisburg, 
to  receive  their  pay  and  final  discharge.  They  left 
camp  at  2  o'clock  of  the  morning  of  Jane  2d,  and 
marched  to  Washington,  where  they  took  cars  for 
llarrisburg. 

While  here,  Captains  Wm.  E.  Foster,  Jacob  P- 
Brooke,  Wm.  S.  Mellick,  and  Thos.  II.  Parker,  and 
Lieutenants  David  Long,  George  C.  Gutelius,  and 
Hugh  McClure,  were  detailed  to  sit  on  court-martial 
for  the  District  of  Alexandria.  Their  duties  con 
tinued  for  about  four  weeks.  When  finishing  up  all 
the  business  pertaining  to  their  term,  they  were  re 
lieved  by  a  detail  from  the  2d  District  of  Columbia 


regiment. 


Towards  the  middle  of  July  the  order  to  muster 
out  the  9th  Army  Corps  was  issued  and  sent  to 
corps  headquarters  in  the  city,  where  it  lay  for 
several  days  before  it  was  promulgated.  The  mus 
ter-out  rolls  came  into  camp  on  the  16th  of  July, 
and  the  company  commanders  went  to  work  at  them 
immediately,  to  get  them  filled  up  ;  all  the  men,  too, 
who  were  anxious  to  get  home,  volunteered  to  assist 
in  the  stupendous  task  ;  for,  be  it  known,  it  was  an 
immense  job — every  name  that  ever  appeared  on  any 
of  the  former  rolls,  from  the  original  rnuster-in,  had 
to  be  accounted  for  on  nine  separate  rolls.  The 
task  was  completed  on  the  27th  July,  1865. 

On  the  night  of  the  21st  July  the  order  to  muster 


620     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

out  the  regiment  arrived  in  carnp ;  the  news  was 
received  with  lively  satisfaction.  It  also  contained 
a  paragraph  stating  that  all  the  men  could  retain 
their  guns  and  equipments  at  a  cost  of  six  dollars 
per  set  to  each  man.  There  were  only  a  few  who 
declined  to  retain  those  articles  that  had  become 
associated  with  them  so  long,  in  all  their  trials,  pri 
vations,  dangers,  troubles,  and  pleasures,  and  those 
few  were  principally  the  "  raw  recruits." 

Col.  Bolton  made  a  farewell  address  to  his  com 
mand  in  the  following  order,  as  published  to  the 
regiment : 

HEAD-QUARTERS  51  ST  REGT.  P.  V.  V.      | 
ALEXANDRIA,  VA.,  July  20^,  18G5.  ) 

Officers  and  men  of  the  51st  Regt.  Penn.  Vet.  Vols.  : 

In  a  very  few  days  this  organization  will  cease  to  exist.  Our 
mission  has  been  fulfilled,  the  armed  hosts  of  the  enemy  no 
longer  defy  us,  our  long,  fatiguing  marches  and  hard  fighting 
and  weary  watching  for  the  enemy,  day  and  night,  are  things 
of  the  past.  You  have,  by  your  patriotic  devotion,  assisted  in 
establishing  a  country,  one,  grand,  glorious,  and  indeed  free. 
For  nearly  four  years  I  have  been  associated  with  you,  and  for 
over  one  year  of  that  time  I  have  had  the  honor  to  be  your 
commander.  I  would  not  be  doing  myself  or  you  justice  with 
out  giving  expression  to  my  feelings.  A  thousand  thanks  are 
due  to  both  officers  and  men  for  your  prompt  obedience  to  all 
my  orders,  and  my  love  is  increased  by  the  remembrance  of 
your  bravery  and  gallantry,  as  you  have  so  often  displayed  on 
many  a  bloody  field.  But  alas  !  many  of  our  organization  now 
sleep  in  the  valley  of  the  dead  ;  they  sleep  in  honored  graves. 
And  it  is  with  pleasure  that  we  can  think  of  their  many  virtues, 
their  valor  in  the  field,  and  their  cheerful  voice  in  camp,  and  hope 
that  they  have  received  their  golden  reward  in  heaven.  When 
all  looked  gloomy,  you  wore  cheerful  faces  ;  and  when  orders 
were  exacting,  you  always  cheerfully  obeyed.  When  fighting 
against  overwhelming  odds,  and  by  superior  numbers  compelled 
to  retreat,  you  have  ever  evinced  that  noble,  praiseworthy  char 
acteristic  of  a  good  soldier,  "repulsed,  but  not  whipped," 
"defeated,  but  not  conquered."  I  feel  sad  to  part  with  you  ; 
we  may  never  meet  again.  You  are  about  to  return  to  your 
homes,  and  assume  the  garb  and  customs  of  private  citizens. 
I  am  a  young  man  ;  there  are  amongst  you  many  who  are  old 
enough  perhaps  to  be  my  father  ;  time  has  whitened  your  hoary 
locks.  I  cannot  part  with  you  without  urging  that  if  you  have 
acquired  bad  habits,  incidental  to  camp  life,  to  make  a  firm 
resolve  to  break  off  at  once,  and  show  to  your  friends  at  home 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.  621 

that  you  can  be  as  good  and  law-abiding  citizens  as  you  have 
been  good,  brave,  and  exemplary  soldiers. 

I  need  not  particularize  separately  your  many  deeds ;  they 
all  have  been  fairly  won.  The  record  you  bear  on  your  silken 
colors  have  been  honestly  won  by  the  blood  of  your  companions, 
and  the  deep  scars  many  of  you  bear  upon  your  persons.  You 
need  no  marble  shaft  to  commemorate  your  many  valorous 
deeds ;  your  scars,  your  sacrifices,  and  the  noble  acts  of  gal 
lantry  you  have  displayed,  will  be  your  monument.  Posterity 
will  applaud  you  as  the  redeemers  of  our  country,  the  wrorld 
will  admire  your  self-sacrificing  devotion  to  your  country. 

I  now  bid  you  farewell,  and  when  the  war  of  this  life  is  over 
with  us,  when  we  shall  have  performed  our  last  earthly  mission, 
may  we  all  meet  in  heaven  is  the  earnest  prayer  of  the  colonel 
commanding. 

With  my  kindest  wishes  for  your  future  prosperity,  I  bid  you 
farewell.  WM.  J.  BOLTON,  Colonel  51s*  P.  V.  V. 

The  day  of  muster-out  arrived,  the  27th  of  July, 
1865,  and  the  regiment  was  mustered  out  of  the  United 
States  service  by  Capt.  Edwin  Earp,  of  the  1st  Mas 
sachusetts  Heavy  Artillery,  Assistant  Commissary 
of  Musters  for  the  District  of  Alexandria. 

On  the  morning  of  July  28th,  the  regiment  broke 
camp  and  marched  to  the  foot  of  King  street,  amid 
the  congratulations  of  its  friends  who  thronged  the 
street  on  both  sides,  where  it  embarked  on  board  of 
a  steamboat  for  Washington  ;  there  disembarking 
marched  to  the  Baltimore  depot,  where  it  had  to  lie 
till  near  dark,  when  it  took  the  cars  for  Baltimore. 
On  arriving  there  it  marched  to  the  depot  of  the 
Northern  Central  railroad,  and  steamed  it  on  to 
Harrisburg,  arriving  on  the  30th.  It  turned  in  its 
books  and  regimental  papers,  unserviceable  arms, 
and  those  not  retained  by  the  men,  and  received  its 
pay  and  discharge  papers.  The  five  companies  re 
mained  in  Harrisburg  until  the  next  day,  when  they 
departed  for  Norristown,  to  receive  the  congratula 
tions  of  the  "  loved  ones  "  and  friends,  and  partake 
of  a  collation  served  up  at  the  Odd-Fellows'  Hall, 
after  which  a  final  separation  took  place,  and  each 


622      HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

sought  the  comforts  and  quiet  of  a  home  in  civil  life. 
The  next  day  the  officers  had  to  return  to  Harris- 
burg,  to  settle  up  their  accounts  and  indebtedness 
with  the  Government  and  get  their  pay,  which  kept 
them  two  or  three  days.  After  adjusting  their  ac 
counts,  a  final  "farewell"  took  place,  and  the  last 
obligatory  vestige  of  the  noble  old  51st  P.  V.  and 
51st  P.  V.  Y.  was  lost  to  the  nation's  view;  and 
now,  since  we  have  obtained  our  pay  and  are  mus 
tered  out,  free  of  military  restraint  and  discipline, 
we  bid  farewell  to  the  cannon's  roar,  hoping  it  shall 
never  again  be  heard  in  battle  with  our  own  people. 


CHAPTEK  II. 

Roster  of  Field  and  Staff  Officers— Roll  of  Co.  A— Roll  of  Co. 
13— Roll  of  Co.  C— Roll  of  Co.  D— Roll  of  Co.  E— Roll  of 
Co.  F— Roll  of  Co.  G— Roll  of  Co.  H— Roll  of  Co.  I— Roll  of 
Co.  K — Roll  of  names  unassigned — Statement — Causalties — 
List  of  battles  engaged  in — Distance  travelled. 

Col.  Jno.  F.  Hartranft.  Promoted  brigadier-general,  June  8, 
1804,  and  to  brevet  major-general,  March  25,  1805. 

Col.  Win.  J.  Bolton.  Promoted  from  captain  of  Co.  A.  to 
major,  September  17, 1802  ;  then  to  colonel,  June  20,  1804  ;  then 
to  brevet  brigadier-general,  March  13,  1865. 

Lieut-Col.  Thos.  S.  Bell.     Killed  at  Antietam,  Sept.  17, 1802. 

Lieut.-Col.  Edwin  Schall.  Promoted  from  major  to  lieu 
tenant-colonel,  September  17,  1802.  Killed  at  Cold  Harbor, 
June  3,  1804. 

Lieut.-Col.  Win.  Allebaugh.  Promoted  from  captain  of  Co. 
C.  to  lieutenant-colonel,  April  23, 1805  ;  to  brevet  colonel,  March 
13,  1805.  Was  captured  along  with  his  colors  at  Spottsylvania 
Court-house,  Va.,  May  12, 1804;  rejoined  his  regiment,  May  1, 
18(n. 

M.-ij.  Lane  S.  Hart.  Promoted  from  captain  of  Co.  F.,  July 
12,  1804.  Severely  wounded,  August  19,  1804,  in  battle  at  the 
Yellow  Tavern,  on  ti^e  Weldon  railroad,  Virginia.  Discharged 
on  account  of  wounds,  December  17,  1804. 

Maj.  Joseph  K.  Bolton.  Promoted  from  captain  of  Co.  A., 
January  15,  1805. 

Adj.  Daniel  P.  Bible.     Resigned,  June  5,  1802. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  623 

Adj.  George  Shorkley.  Promoted  from  1st  lieut.  Co.  H.  to 
adjutant,  June  6,  1862.  Wounded  at  Camden,  N.  C.,  April  19, 
1802,  and  again  severely  wounded  in  front  of  Petersburg  in 
1804.  Was  promoted  to  captain  of  Co.  H.,  April  22,  1864,  and 
to  brevet  major,  July  30,  1864  ;  then  to  brevet  lieutenant-colonel, 
March  25,  1865,  and  again  to  brevet  colonel,  April  9,  1865. 

Adj.  Martin  L.  Schock.  Promoted  from  1st  sergeant  to  2d 
lieutenant,  January  12,  1864;  to  1st  lieutenant  and  adjutant, 
May  2,  1864.  Discharged  on  account  of  wounds  received  in 
action,  November  2,  1864. 

Adj.  Jacob  H.  Santo.  Wounded  at  Antietam,  September  17, 
1852.  Promoted  from  1st  sergeant  to  2d  lieutenant,  April  15, 
1864  ;  to  1st  lieutenant  and  adjutant,  January  15,  1865.  Veteran. 

Quar.-Mas.  Jno.  J.  Freedley.  Promoted  from  1st  lieutenant 
of  Co.  C.,  October  17, 1861.  Resigned, and  went  home,  May  11, 
1868. 

Quar.-Mas.  Samuel  P.  Stephens.  Promoted  from  sergeant, 
November  16,  1861,  to  commissary-sergeant;  then  to  1st  lieu 
tenant  and  regimental  quartermaster,  May  13,  1863. 

Surg.  J.  A.  Livergood.  Transferred  to  101st  regiment,  P.  V., 
Nov.  20,  1861. 

Suro;.  Jno.  A.  Hosack.  Transferred  from  101st  regiment,  P. 
V.,  November  20,  1861.  Resigned,  July  30,  1863. 

Suro-.  Win.  C.  Shurlock.  Transferred  from  100th  regiment, 
P.  V.,  March  9,  1864.  Mustered  out  June,  1865. 

Surg.  Manning  F.  Bowes.  Mustered  out  with  regiment,  July 
27,  1865. 

Asst.-Surg.  Jas.  D.  Noble.    Resigned,  July  21,  1862. 

Asst.-Surg.  Jno.  B.  Rineholdt.     Mustered  out,  June  5,  1865. 

Asst.-Surg.  Chas.  S.  Duffell.     Mustered  out,  November  16, 

1864.  Expiration  of  time. 

Asst.-Surg.  Jas.  Cress.  Mustered  out  with  regiment,  July 
27,  1865. 

Chaplain  Danl.  G.  Mallory,  Resigned,  July  27,  1863.  Re- 
commissioned,  April  8, 1864.  Discharged  by  special  order,  Sept. 
2,  1864. 

Sergt.-Maj.  Curtin  B.Stoneroad.  Promoted  to  2d  lieutenant 
in  Co.  G.,  June  25,  1864. 

Serg.-Maj.  C.  Jones  Iredell.  Killed  by  accident,  August  13, 
1862,  at  Aquia  creek. 

Serg.-Maj.  Gco.  C.  Gutelius.  Promoted  to  2d  lieutenant  in 
Co.  E,  January  14,  1865.  Veteran. 

Sergt.-Maj.  Levi  Shingle.  Promoted  from  sergeant  in  Co.  C. , 
Jan.'i4,  1865.  Veteran. 

Quar.-Mas.  Sergt.  Louis  Cartuyval.     Mustered  out,  July  27, 

1865.  Vole  ran. 

Quar.-Mas.  Sergt.  Christopher  Wyckoff.  Promoted  from 
corporal  in  Co.  F.  to  quarter-master  sergeant,  December  13, 
1862.  Discharged  bv  special  order,  March  8,  1865.  Veteran. 

Quar.-Mas.  Sergt.  Wm.  L.  Jones.     Died,  December  12,  1862. 

Com.  Sergt.  Levi  Bolt  on.  Promoted  from  corporal  in  Co. 
A.,  December  3,  1861.  Mustered  out  with  regiment.  Veteran. 


624     HISTOEY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Com.  Sergt.  Thos.  II.  Parker.  Promoted  to  captain  in  Co.  I., 
December  2,  1864.  Veteran. 

Com.  Sergt.  Allen  H.  Filman.  Promoted  to  2d  lieutenant  in 
Co.  F.,  July  22,  1864.  Veteran. 

Hosp.  Steward  Martin  H.  Dunn.  Mustered  out  with  regiment. 
Veteran. 

Drum-Maj.  Ed.  D.  Johnson.     Mustered  out  with  regiment. 


ROLL  OF  CO.  A. 

From  its  organization  in  1861,  to  its  final  muster  out  in  1865. 
Alphabetically  arranged  and  not  according  to  rank.     Recruited 

at  Norristown. 

Wm.  J.  Bolton,  captain.  Promoted  major,  Sept.  17,  1862  ; 
colonel,  June  26,  1864 ;  to  brevet  brigadier-general,  March  13, 
1865  ;  was  severely  wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  the  taking  of 
Antietam  bridge  ;  was  again  wounded  in  the  same  spot,  July 
30,  1864,  at  the  blowing  up  of  the  rebel  fort  by  Gen.  Burnside. 
Mustered  out  with  regiment  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Jos.  K.  Bolton,  1st  lieut.  Promoted  captain  Sept.  17,  1862; 
then  major,  Jan.  15,  1865.  Wounded  in  June,  1864,  in  front  of 
Petersburg,  Va.  Mus.  out  with  reg.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Abraham  L.  Ortlip,  2d  lieut.  Promoted  to  1st  lieutenant 
Sept.  17,  1862  ;  resigned  April  20,  1864. 

John  S.  Moore,  1st  sergt.  Promoted  to  2d  lieutenant  Sept. 
17,  1862  ;  to  1st  lieutenant,  May  3, 1864.  Killed  at  Wilderness, 
May  6,  1864.  Buried  at  Wilderness  cemetery.  Veteran. 

Jonathan  B.  Ellis,  sergt.  Discharged  March  4,  1864,  for 
disability.  Re-enlisted  as  a  veteran  private  and  was  promoted 
corporal  Oct.  31,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  company.  Wounded 
May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania. 

Adams,  John.  Promoted  corporal,  Jan.  15,  1865.  Deserted 
June  22,  1865,  while  on  furlough. 

Abbott,  Henry.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Altar,  Henry,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Bolton,  Levi,  corpl.  Reduced  to  ranks  July  4,  1862. 
WTounded  at  Antietam,  Sept.  17,  1862.  Promoted  corporal, 
March  29,  1863.  Wounded  May  12,  1864.  Promoted  commis 
sary  sergeant,  Dec.  3,  1864.  Mustered  out  with  regiment,  July 
27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Butz,  Abraham,  corpl.     Discharged  April  21,  1863. 

Brannon,  Jno.  C.,  corpl.  Reduced  to  ranks,  Nov.  26,  1861. 
Died  at  Newbern,  N.  C.,  May  21,  1862. 

Barndt,  Irwin,  priv.     Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Cps,  Nov.  8,  1863. 

Barr,  Wm.,priv.  Deserted  and  arrested,  Oct.  1,  1862;  sen 
tenced  to  forfeit  one  month's  pay.  Captured  at  North  Ann, 
May  27,  1864.  Dis.  by  G.  O.,  May  12,  1865.  Veteran. 

Bellman,  Gotlieb,  prir.     Died  of  disease,  Nov.  19,  1862. 

Bennett,  Jacob,  priv.     Discharged  Dec.  2,  1862. 

Bodey,  George,  priv.  Died  May  2,  1864,  at  Warrenton 
Junction,  Va.  Veteran. 


1 

OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  625 

Bolton,  Benj.  F.,  priv.  Discharged,  Sept.  11, 1864,  at  expira 
tion  of  term. 

Bolton,  Thos.  J.,  priv.  Wounded  May  6,  1864.  at  the  Wil 
derness,  Va.  Dis.  on  account  of  wounds,  Feb.  25,  1865.  Vet. 

Bolton,  James  M.,  priv.  Wounded,  Sept.  17,  1862.  Dis 
charged  on  account  of  wounds,  June  25,  1863. 

Bond,  George,  priv.    Died  Oct.  20, 1861,  at  Camp  Curtin,  Pa. 

Buzzard,  George  S.,  corpl.  Wounded,  Sept.  17, 1862.  Prom, 
corporal,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Baker,  James  M.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G  O.,  July  11,  1865. 

Bergest,  Samuel,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Block,  Elijah,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 
•  Block,  James,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Beam,  Jonas,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Burkhart,  Joseph,  priv.    Discharged  by  G.  0.,  June  3,  1865. 

Brown,  Win.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Bockus,  Win.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Barringer,  Wm.     Mastered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865. 

Baker,  Geo.  B.,  priv.  Wounded  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  3, 
1864.  Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865. 

Baten,  Jas.  W.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Bockus,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  Avith  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Barndt,  Albert,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Buzzard,  Saml.  S.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Brooks,  Jonathan,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  G.,  Sept.  18,  1864. 

Boyer,  Henry,  priv.     Died  May  4,  1864,  at  Alexandria,  Va. 

Backen,  Win.,  priv.     Died  July  1,  1865,  of  tonsillitis. 

Bare,  John,  priv.  Wounded  May  6, 1864,  at  the  Wilderness. 
Died  from  wounds,  May  30,  1864. 

Berks,  Geo.  W.,  priv.  Captured  at  North  Ann,  May  27, 
1864.  Died,  Oct.  24,  1864,  while  a  prisoner  at  Andersonville. 
Grave,  11,434. 

Berks,  Archibald,  priv.  Deserted  from  Filbert  street  hospi 
tal,  Feb.  27,  1865. 

Buzzard,  Adam  S.,  private. 

Broomall,  Benj.,  priv.  Deserted  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  June 
22,  1865. 

Coulston,  John  H.,  corporal.  Promoted  corporal,  Jan.  21, 
1862.  Wounded,  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South  Mountain.  Pro 
moted  5th  sergeant,  Sept.  17,  1862  ;  to  4th  sergeant,  Sept.  28, 
1862  ;  to  1st  sergeant,  Oct.  1,  1863.  Promoted  2d  lieutenant, 
May  3,  1864.  Wounded  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  3,  1864.  Pro 
moted  to  1st  lieutenant,  Oct.  1,  1864;  to  captain,  Jan.  15,  1865. 
Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Clare,  John,  priv.     Trans,  to  1st  U.  S.  Art.,  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Caster,  Abraham,  priv.  Deserted  Oct.  1,  1862  ;  sentenced 
to  forfeit  one  month's  pay.  Wounded,  Dec.  13,  1862  ;  died, 
Dec.  14,  1862,  from  wounds  received  at  Fredericksburg. 

Campbell,  Davis,  priv.  Deserted,  April  30,  and  again  Aug. 
30,  1862.  Discharged,  June  28,  1863,  at  Milldale,  Miss. 

Carrier,  Wm.  A.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Claycout,  John,  priv.     Dischar'd,  Dec.  23,  1864.    'Substitute. 


626     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST    REGIMENT 

Cornog,  Wm.,  priv.  Died  of  disease,  Aug.  18,  1801,  at  Fort 
Schuyler,  N.  Y. 

Capwell,  Richard  N.,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  2,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Constable,  Henry,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865.  Drafted. 

Collcgo,  Henry,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  2, 1865.     Drafted. 

Case.  Enos,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865. 

Carney,  Win.,  priv.  Died,  Aug.  19,  1864.  Buried  in  Gyp. 
H.  cemetery. 

Coulston,  Jas.,  priv.     Killed,  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Doud,  Benj.  F.,    priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Doud,  Saml.  G.,  drum.  Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps,  Camp 
Kelson,  Ky.,  Nov.  8,  1863;  re-enlisted,  Jan.  24,  1865.  Mus 
tered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Doud,  James  M.,  corpl.  Reduced  to  ranks,  Oct.  30,  1863. 
Promoted  corpl.,  June  23,  1865.  Mustered  out  with  company, 
July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Doud,  Thos.,  priv.  Mustered  out,  Sept.  11,  1864.  Expira 
tion  of  term. 

DeHaven,  Isaac,  priv.  Transferred  to  battery  K  1st  IT  S. 
Artillery,  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Dickinson,  Henry,  corpl.  Promoted  corpl.,  June  3,  1865. 
Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Divers,  Jos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept.  11,  1864.     Expir.  of  term. 

Druckenmiller,  Aaron,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.   O  ,  June  2,  1865. 

Dobson,  Simon,  priv.  Wounded,  April  1,  1865,  in  front  of 
Petersburg,  Va.  Died,  April  3,  1865,  from  wounds. 

Derr,  Jacob  H.,  priv.  Wounded  at  Spottsylvania  Court- 
Louse,  May  12,  1864.  Died  of  wounds,  May  28,  1864.  Buried 
in  Nat.  Cein.  at  Arlington,  Va. 

Detinger,  Saml.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Dried,  Daniel,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2.  1865. 

Delingcr,  Franklin,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Evans,  Edward  L.,  lieut.  Promoted  from  priv.  to  corpl,, 
Jan.  21,  1862  ;  tosergt.,  Jan.  5, 1864  ;  to  2d  lieut.,  Dec.  18,  1864. 
Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Ellis,  Jonathan  B.,  1st  sergt.  Promoted  to  1st  sergt,  Sept. 
17,  1862,  from  2d  sergt.  Promoted  2d  sergt.,  Jan.  21,  1862; 
discharged  for  disability,  Mar.  4,  1863  ;  re-enlisted  as  veteran 
private,  March,  1864.  Prom,  corpl.,  Oct.  31,  1864;  wounded, 
May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania.  Mus.  out  with  com.  July  27, 
1865.  Veteran. 

Ecker,  Danl.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.  July  27,  1865. 

Evans,  Chas.  B.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Eckhart,  Geo.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.  July  27,  1865. 

English,  Harrison,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  20,  1865. 

Fillman,  Isaac  E.,  sergt.  Wounded  at  South  Mountain, 
Sept.  14,  1862.  Promoted,  Jan.  1,  1864  ;  to  sergt.,  Dec.  3,  186 i. 
Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Fix,  Chas.,  priv.  Wounded  at  South  Mountain,  Sept,  14, 
1862.  Wounded,  May  6,  1864  at  Wilderness.  Died  of  wounds, 
June  18,  1864.  Veteran. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  627 

Foreman,  Nathan,  priv.  Discharged,  Feb.  18,  1803,  at  Long 
Bridge,  Virginia. 

Foreman,  Saml.,  priv.     Dis.,  Jan.  25,  1863,  at  Philadelphia. 

Franklin,  Linclley  R.,  prir.  Discharged,  March  4,  1803. 
Captured,  Aug.  30,  1802,  at  Bull  Run  battle. 

Farrel,  Thos.,  priv.  Wounded  at  Spottsylvania  Court  house, 
May  12,  1804.  Discharged  by  G.  O.,  July  24,  1805. 

Florey,  John,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  20,  1805. 

Foos,  Israel,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1805.     Drafted. 

Findley,  Archibald,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  2,  1805. 
Drafted. 

Foucht,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  2,  1805.     Sub. 

Fischer,  Lewis  C.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1805. 

Freas,  Jesse,  priv.     Killed,  May  12,  1804  at  Spottsylvania. 

Freas,  Saml.  II.,  priv.  Wounded,  May  12,  1864,  at  Spott 
sylvania  ;  absent  at  muster  out  of  company,  July  27, 1805. 

Fried,  Jno.  G.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Gilbert,  Theo.  H.,  priv.  Reduced  from  sergt  to  the  ranks, 
Jan.  21,  1802.  Wounded,  May  6,  1804,  at  the  Wilderness. 
Mustered  out,  Dec.  23,  1804;  expiration  of  term. 

Gray,  Jeremiah,  corpl.  Wounded,  May  14,  1804,  at  Spot- 
sylvania.  Prom,  corpl.,  Mar.  10,  1804.  Died,  May,  10,  1804, 
from  wounds  ;  buried  in  Wilderness  burial  ground. 

Goodwin,  Benj.,  priv.  Wounded,  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain.  Deserted,  Aug.  30,  1803. 

Goodwin,  Jonathan,  priv.     Discharged,  Dec.  12,  1832. 

Gargas,  Amandus,  corpl.  Promoted  corpl.,  Dec.  3,  1804. 
Wounded,  May  0,  1864,  at  the  Wilderness.  Mustered  out  w*ith 
company,  July  27,  1805. 

Getman,  Jno.,  corpl.  Promoted  corporal,  April  11,  1865. 
Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865. 

Geisinger,  Fredk.,  priv.     DCS.  while  on  guard,  May  30,  1865. 

Gauker,  Israel,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Gerhart,  Jos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1805. 

Gross,  Jno.  F.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1805. 

Hammel,  Pat.,  priv.    Mus.  out,  Sept.  11, 1804.  Expir.  of  term. 

Hansell,  Chas.  S.,  priv.  Wounded,  May  12,  1864,  at  Spott 
sylvania.  Mus.  out  with  com.  July  27,  1805.  Veteran. 

Hoffman,  Wm.,  team.  Mus.  out  with  com.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Hay  berry,  Chas.,  priv.     Trans,  to  1st  U.  S.  bat.,  Oct.  25, 1802. 

Hennis,  Jno.,  priv.     Tran.  to  1st  U.  S.  bat'y,  Oct.  25,  1802. 

Heard,  Wm.,  priv.   Killed,  Dec.  13,1802,  at  Frederick  sburg, 

Hennis,  Chas.  M.,  sergt.  Captured,  Dec.  15,  1803,  at  Clinch 
Mts.  Escaped.  Promoted  from  corpl.  to  sergt.,  Dec.  3,  1864. 
Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1805.  Veteran. 

Herbster,  Jesse,  corpl.  Prom,  corpl.,  May  14,  1803.  Mus 
tered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1864.  Veteran. 

Harff,  Wm.,  priv.  Captured,  Aug.  21,  1804,  at  Yellow  Tav 
ern.  Died  at  Salisbury,  N.  C.,  Nov.  3,  1804,  while  a  prisoner. 

Ilallman,  Eclw.,  priv.  Wounded,  May  14,  1804,  at  Spottsyl 
vania.  Transf.  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  March  4,  1865. 


628     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY- FIRST   EEGIMENT 

Hood,  Danl.,  priv.  Wounded  at  the  Wilderness,  May  G, 
18G4.  Deserted,  Dec.  27,  18G4,  from  hospital. 

Herbster,  Win.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.   July  27,   18G5. 

Himes,  Saml.,  priv.  Wounded,  May  6,  18G4,  at  the  Wilder 
ness.  Transf.  to  vet.  res.  corps,  March  4,  1865. 

Hueguenin,  Geo.  A.  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Horner,  Win.  A.,  priv.  Mus.  out  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Hildredth,  Allen,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Hunsinger,  Clias.  G.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  com.  July  27,  1865. 

Invin,  Isaac,  M.  D.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Jordan,  John  A.,  corpl.  Reduced  to  ranks,  July  4,  1862. 
Deserted,  Oct.  31,  1862,  and  again,  Mar.  10,  1864;  but  returned 
to  duty,  April  12,  1864  ;  taken  prisoner  at  the  Yellow  Tavern, 
Va.,  Aug.  21,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  com.,  July  27,  1865. 

Jones,  Saml.  H.,  corpl.  Prom,  corpl.,  Nov.  1,  1862;  taken 
prisoner,  Dec.  15,  1863,  at  Clinch  Mountains,  Term.  Mustered 
out  with  company,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Jones,  Abraham,  priv.  Taken  prisoner  at  Clinch  Mountains, 
Tenn.,  Dec.  15,  1863.  Mus.  out  with  company  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Jones,  Benj.  D.,  priv.  Wounded  Sep.  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain.  Dis.  Jan.  4,  1863,  for  disability. 

Jones,  John  S.,  corp.  Wounded  Aug.  19,  1864,  at  Weldon 
R.  R.  Dis.  June  3,  1865,  on  account  of  wounds.  Veteran. 

Johnson,  Ashberry  M.,  priv.  Dis.  Sep.  8,  1862,  at  Beaufort, 
North  Carolina. 

Johnson,  Jesse,  corp.  Captured  Aug.  30,  1862,  at  Bull  Run. 
Mustered  out  Sep.  11,  1864,  expiration  of  term.  Wounded 
May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.,  Va. 

Johnson,  Isaiah  T.,  priv.  Transf.  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  March 
4,  1865. 

Johnson,  Edward,  music'n.     Trans,  to  Co.  C.,  Sep.  18, 1864. 

Jones,  Ralph,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

James  Wilson,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kelichner,  Edward,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred- 
ericksburg.  Mus.  out  Sep.  11,  1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Keyser,  Chas.,  priv.  Wounded  Sep.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Died  Sep.  30,  1864,  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

Keyser,  Lewis  T.,  priv.  Capt,  Aug.  30.  1862,  at  Bull  Run. 
Deserted  Nov.  1,  1862. 

Kilpatrick,  Win.,  priv.     Died  of  disease,  Dec.  1,  1861. 

Keller,  Jacob,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Kulp,  Jacob  W.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kelly,  Barney,  priv.  Deserted  and  returned.  Mustered  out 
with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lare,  Daniel,  corp.  Wounded,  Dec.  2,  1863,  at  siege  of 
Knoxville,  Tenn.  Mus.  out  Sep.  11,  1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Lare,  Albanus,  priv.  Wounded,  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Freder- 
icksburg,  Va.  Dis.  March  24,  1863. 

Lewis,  Jos.  N.     Mus.  out  Sep.  11,  1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Linck,  Christian,  priv.  Deserted  July  4,  1863,  arrested  and 
sent  to  Fort  McHenry. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  629 

Lysinger,  Hiram,  corp.  Promoted  to  corp.  Oct.  31,  1804. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lake,  Lucius,  priv.  Wounded  April  2,  1865,  at  Petersburg, 
Va,  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Moyer,  Jacob  H.,  sergt.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred- 
ericksbure,  Va.  Pro.  to  3d  sergt.  Sept.  17,  1862.  Wounded 
June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Harbor,  Va.  Died  July  11,  1864,  from 
wounds. 

Mills,  Frank  H  ,  corp.  Prom,  corporal  July  4,  1862.  Killed 
at  Cold  Harbor,  June  3,  1864. 

McDade,  Washington,  priv.  Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
erick  sburg,  Va. 

Maguire,  James,  priv.  Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg,  Va. 

Markley,  Jacob  W.,  corp.     Dis.  Feb.  21,  1863,  for  disability. 

McGusfan,  Daniel,  priv.    Trans,  to  Inv.  Corps,  Nov.  8,  1863. 

McMicken,  David,  priv.  Killed  Dec.  13, 1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg,  Va. 

McKane,  Andrew,  corp.  Pro.  to  corporal  July  4,  1862. 
Deserted  Feb.  23,  1863. 

McKane,  Wm.,  priv.  Trans,  to  1st  U.  S.  Artillery,  Oct.  — ; 
re-enlisted  Oct.  17,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Morton,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept.  11,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

McCoombs,  Samuel,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

McLain,  Henry,  priv.  Wounded  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsyl- 
vania  C.  H.  Captured  Aug.  21,  1864,  at  the  Yellow  Tavern, 
Va.  Died  while  a  prisoner  at  Salisbury,  N.  C. 

Murray,  Chas.  A.,  priv.  Absent,  undergoing  sentence  of 
general  court-martial  at  Auburn  jail,  N.  Y.,  for  9  years. 

Mattis,  Nelson  Y.,  priv.  Captured  July  30,  1864,  at  the  ex 
plosion  of  the  Burnside  mine.  Died  at  Danville,  Va.,  Jan.  10, 
1865. 

Mattis,  Levi,  priv.     Killed  July  8,  1864,  at  Petersburg,  Va. 

Myers,  Lewis,  priv.  Wounded  June  17, 1864,  at  Petersburg, 
Va.  Died  July  12,  1864,  from  wounds  received  in  battle. 

Mack,  Alexander,  priv.     Deserter. 

McMullen,  James  E.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  2,  1865. 

Moyer,  Joseph,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1835. 

Miller,  Samuel  J.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

McGrail,  Thos,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

McGlinchy,  James,  priv.  Deserted  to  the  enemy,  Jan.  25, 
1865,  with  gun  and  equipments. 

Mason,  Wm.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Nyce,  Monroe,  priv.  Wounded  April  19,  1862,  at  Camden, 
North  Carolina.  Deserted  March  29,  1863. 

Nunheimer,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Noll,  Rudolph, priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865.     Drafted. 

Nathans,  Lewis,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  2,  1865.    Drafted. 

Ortlip,  Osman,  sergt,  Pro.  to  corp.,  Jan.  21,  1862,  to  sergt. 
1863,  to  1st  sergt.  April  13,  1861  Wounded  May  6,  1864,"at 
the  Wilderness,  Va.,  and  at  South  Mountain,  Sep.  14,  1862. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 


630     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY  FIRST   REGIMENT 

O'Neil,  James,  corp.  Prom,  corp.,  April  11,  1865.  Mus.  out 
with  co.,  July  27,  1805.  Veteran. 

Oster,  Jacob,  priv.  Mustered  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Pinch,  Harvey,  priv.  Captured  Aug.  80,  1862,  at  Bull  Run. 
Wounded  April  10,  1862,  at  Camden,  N.  Carolina,  and  cap 
tured  at  the  same  time.  Died  at  Annapolis,  March  31,  1804. 
Veteran. 

Pinch,  Winfield  8.,  priv.  Trans,  to  battery  K,  1st  U  S. 
Artillery,  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Parvin,  Ephraim,  priv.  Wounded  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsyl- 
vania.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Parker,  Saml.  G.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Quinlan,  Edward,  priv.  Wounded  Mar.  30,  1863,  at  Colum 
bus,  Ohio.  Died  April  1,  1863,  from  wounds. 

Rittenhouse,  Jacob,  priv.  Mus.  out  September  11,  1864, 
expiration  of  term. 

Roberts,  Robert,  priv.  Mus.  out  Sep.  11,  1864,  expiration  of 
term. 

Rodenbaugh,  Lemuel,  priv.     Discharged  Dec.  27,  1861. 

Richards,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Richards,  David,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Reed,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Raunzahn,  David,  priv.    Draft.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June 2,  1865. 

Richards,  James,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Reed,  Daniel,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Roily,  James,  priv.  Substitute.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July 
27,  1865. 

Rogers,  Albert,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  May  25,  1865. 

Snpplee,  Robert,  sergt.  Pro.  4th  sergt.,  Sept.  17,1862.  Died 
Sept.  27,  1862. 

Shillich,  Jno.  W.,  musician.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27, 
1865.  Veteran. 

Sanders,  Adolph,  priv.     Died  Nov.  10,  1861. 

Schrack,  David,  priv.     Died  July  12,  1862,  of  disease. 

Schock,  Theodore,  priv.    Discharged  Nov.  22,  1862. 

Selah,  Tlios.,  priv.     Deserted  Dec.  13,  1862. 

Slingluff,  Samuel,  priv.  Deserted  and  arrested ;  sentenced 
by  general  court-martial  to  be  shot ;  escaped  Oct.  15,  1862. 

Sensenderfer,  Sol.,  priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  Nov. 
8,  1868. 

•Shade,  Israel,  priv.     Deserted  Dec.  11,  1862. 

Shade,  John,  priv.  Discharged  Oct.  21,  1862.  Wounded  ' 
Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South  Mountain. 

Sickle,  Edwin  R.  W.,  priv.     Discharged  Dec.  22,  1862. 

Smith,  John  D.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Smith,  Washington,  sergt.  Pro.  corporal  July  30,  1864  ;  to 
sergeant  Jan.  15,1865.  Wounded  Aug.  21,  1864,  at  Yellow  Tav 
ern.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Somerlot,  Wm.,  priv.     Killed  at  Antietam,  Sept.  17,  1862. 

Stout,  Daniel,  priv.  Wounded  Sept,  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain.  Discharged  Dec.  29,  1862. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  631 

Smith,  George,  priv.  Wounded  May  12,  1804,  at  Spottsylva- 
nia.  Died  May  30,  1864,  from  his  wounds. 

Smith,  Henry,  priv.  Wounded  May  12,  18G4,  at  Spottsylva- 
nia.  Died  May  14,  1804,  from  his  wounds. 

Supplee,  Joseph,  priv.  Wounded  May  9,  1864,  at  Spottsyl- 
vania.  Mas.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1805. 

Saylor,  John,  priv.  AVounded  May  12,  1804,  at  near  Spott- 
sylvania.  Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Sterns,  Jacob,  priv.  Wounded  June  3,  1804,  at  Cold  Harbor. 
Trans,  to  Vet.  Ees.  Corps,  Mar.  4,  1805. 

Scheets,  Chas.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  G,  Sept,  1804. 

Strayer,  Samuel,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Settler,  FrecTk,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  May  26,  1865. 

Schafer,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1805. 

Stover,  Abraham  D.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27, 1805. 

Shelley,  Austin,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  -Inly  27,  1865. 

Shelley,  Enos,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Shimer,  John  W.,  priv.     DCS.     Absent  in  arrest  at  Mus.  out. 

Sweeny,  Jacob  H.,  priv.     Trans,  to  co.  G,  Sep.  18,  1864. 

Spease,  Jesse,  priv.     No  remarks  on  roll. 

Thompson,  Benj.  P.,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  corp.  1802  ;  to  3  1  sergt. 
Jan.  21,  1802  ;  to  2d  sergt.  Sep.  17,  1862  ;  to  1st  sergt.  Oct..l, 
1864  ;  to  2d  lieut.  Oct.  1, 1864  ;  to  1st  lieut.  Dec.  18,  1864.  Taken 
pris.  Aug.  21,  1864,  at  Yellow  Tavern.  Mus.  out  with  co., 
July  27,  1805.  Veteran. 

Toy,  Charles,  priv.  AVounded  Dec.  13,  1802,  at  Fredericks- 
burg,  Ara.  Discharged  Nov.  22,  1804.  Veteran. 

Thompson.  Benj.^F.,  priv.  Died  of  disease,  April  20,  1802,  at 
Roanoke  Island,  N.  C. 

Turner,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1805. 

Tillson,  Sinclair,  priv.  Substitute.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July 
27,  1805. 

Uebele,  George,  corp.  Pro.  corp.  Sep.  17,  1802.  Wounded 
June  3,  1804,  at  Cold  Harbor.  Died  June  18,  1804,  from 
wounds  received  at  Cold  Harbor. 

Vauhorn,  AVm.  M.,  priv.     Killed  Dec.  13, 1864,  at  Fredksbg. 

White,  Joseph,  corp.  AVounded  Sep.  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain.  Died  Sep.  15,  1802,  from  wounds. 

AVidger,  Geo.  AV.,  priv.     Dis.  Nov.  14,  1862. 

Widirer,  Andrew,  priv.  AVounded  Sep.  17,1862,  at  Antietam. 
.  Wood,  Harry  C.  priv.  Dis.  April  28, 1863. 

AVeeber,  Jonathan,  priv.  AVounded  June  17,  1864,  in  front 
of  Petersburg.  Dis.  March  27,  1805,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Williams,  Adam  B.,  priv.  Drat'.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2, 1865. 

AVadworth,  Michl.,  priv.    Draf.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2, 1865. 

Winters,  Enos,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Welsh,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Yunker,  Charles,  priv.  Des.  Oct.  31,  1862.  AVounded  and 
taken  prisoner  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania.  Veteran. 

Y eager,  Adam  W.  priv.  Killed  July  15,  1864,  at  Petersburg. 

Zearfoss,  Joseph  II.,  priv.  AVounded  and  captured  April  19, 
1862,  at  Camden  N.  C.  Deserted  and  dis.  by  order  of  the  AVar 
Department  Jan.  27.  1865.  Veteran. 


632     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Ziegrist,  Jno.,  priv.     Dis  Mar.  6,  1863. 
Total  names  on  roll  227.* 


ROLL  OF  CO.  B. 

Recruited  in  Northampton  County. 

Ferdinand  "VV.  Bell,  capt.  Killed  at  Freclericksburg,  Va., 
Dec.  13,  1862. 

Daniel  L.  Nicholas,  capt.  Pro.  from  2d  lieut.  to  cap.  Dec.  14, 
1862,  to  brevet  maj.,  March  13,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July 
27,  18(55.  Veteran. 

John  H.  Genther,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  to  1st  lieut.  Dec.  14,  1862, 
from  2d  lieut.,  appointed  Brigade  A.  A.  Q.  M.  in  1863.  Mus. 
out  at  expiration  of  term,  Oct.  9,  1864. 

Valentine  Stocker,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  1st 
lieut.  Oct.  30,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Robert  M.  Burrell,  2d  lieut.     Dis.  for  disability  May  2,  1864. 

John  W.  Meeker,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  2d  lieut.  Oct. 
30,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865."  Veteran. 

Samuel  A.  Apple,  1st  sergt.  Pro.  from  corp.  to  1st  sergt. 
Oct  30,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

*  Summary  of  Casualties. — Killed  in  battle — Commissioned  officers, 
1 ;  nun-commissioned  officers,  1  ;  privates,  10  ;  by  accident,  1. 
Died  of  wounds — Non-commissioned  officers,  5  ;  privates,  12.  Died 
from  disease — non-commissioned  officers,  1  ;  privates,  11.  Died  in 
rebel 'prisons — non-commissioned  officers,!;  privates,  4.  Wound 
ed — Commissioned  officers,  5;  non-commissioned  officers,  18; 
privates,  44.  Captured  -  Commissioned  officers,  1 ;  non-commis 
sioned  officers,  3  ;  privates,  13.  Transferred — Privates,  18.  Dis 
charged — Non-commissioned  officers,  3;  privates,  77.  Deserted — 
Non-commissioLed  officers,  3  ;  privates,  22.  Resigned,  1.  Absent, 
sick,  at  muster  out — Privates,  3.  Absent,  in  arrest,  at  muster  out — 
Total,  3. 

Recapitulation.— Killed,  12  ;  Died  of  wounds,  17  ;  Died  of  disease, 
12  ;  Killed  by  accident,  1 ;  Died  in  rebel  prisons,  5— Total  deaths,  47. 
Woun 'ed,  67;  Captured,  17;  Transferred,  18;  Deserted,  25;  Re 
signed  1 ;  Absent,  sick,  at  muster  out,  3  ;  Absent,  in  arrest,  3  ;  Dis 
charged,  80,  Total,  214.  Total  casualties,  261. 

The  above  account  of  the  depletions  of  the  ranks  of  Co.  A 
is  reliable  ;  although  but  227  names  appear  on  the  rolls,  yet  its  list  of 
casualties  would  far  exceed  261,  for  there  is  not  one  case  in  the  pre 
ceding  list  of  wounded  but  what  were  severe  ones  ;  none  are  given 
under  that  head  •'  with  but  one  exception,"  but  those  cases  that  had 
to  be  sent  to  the  hospitals.  The  slightly  wounded,  numbering  about 
80,  if  added  with  the  severely  wounded  would  make  a  grand  total  of 
147  wounded,  swelling  the  total  casualties  in  the  company  to  341. 
The  officers  and  men  of  Co.  A  can  compare  records  with  any 
other  individual  company  that  was  in  the  entire  service,  whether 
"regulars"  or  volunteers,  without  suffering  a  leaf  to  be  plucked 
from  their  crown  of  living  laurels,  as  I  have  looked  over  some  pretty 
bright  records  in  the  Adjutant-General's  office  that  have  received 
high  encomiums  from  those  who  know  where  honor  is  due. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  633 

John  W.  Beam,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Alson  Stocker,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Conrad  Swazer,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Chas.  S.  Knauss,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

AVm.  J.  Osterstock,  sergt.  Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expira 
tion  of  term. 

Geo.  W.  Arndt,  sergt.    Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Cor.  Sep.  27,  1863, 

John  M.  Wein,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Philip  A.  Barnet,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Geo.  Johnson,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Milton  Ackerman,  corp.  Mua.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Enos  Schock,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Saml.  F.  Knapp,  c<  rp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July,  27,  1865. 
Veteran.  Prom.  corp.  May  1,  1865. 

Henry  Schooley,  corp.  Prom,  to  corp.  July  7,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Benj.  F.  Ackerman,  corp.  Prom,  to  corp.  July  3, 1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Matthew  Delaney,  corp.  Captured  May  12,  1864,  at  Spott- 
sylvania  C.  H.,  exchanged  and  rejoined  his  co.  April  21, 
1865.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  29,  1865.  Veteran. 

Thompson  Ackerman,  corp.     Dis.,  date  unknown. 

Saml.  Moore,  corp.  Trans,  to  llth  N.  H.  Jan.  16, 1864.  Vet. 

Edward  Bullman,  corp.  Killed  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilderness, 
Va.  Veteran. 

George  W.  Moser,  corp.  Died  from  wounds  received  in 
action,  June  13,  1864,  at  Washington  D.  C.  Veteran. 

Jno.  D.  Knass,  musician.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Aimer  Neigh,  musician.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Ackerman,  Josiah,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Apple,  Edward,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Arnold,  Joseph,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Albert,  William,  priv.  Captured  at  Leiper's  Ferry,  E.  Tenn. 
Died  at  Danville,  Va.,  Jan.  12,  1864. 

Ackerman,  John  F.,  priv.  Killed  July  31,  1864,  at  Peters 
burg,  Va.,  buried  in  9th  A.  C.  cemetery,  at  Meade's  Station. 

Ackerman,  Harrison,  priv.  Killed  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H., 
May  13,  1864.  Veteran. 

Andrews,  Wm.,  priv.     Deserted  May  27,  1864. 

Buzzard,  Adam,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Brunner,  John  W.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Bachman.  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Mus.  out  withco.  July  27,  1865. 

Bowman,  Wm.  L.,  priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Burns,  John,  piiv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
28 


634:     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Boswcll,  George,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Bring,  Sebastian,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Bisbing,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July'27,  1865. 

Brittain,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Buck,  John  H.,  priv.  Mus.  out  April  11,  1865,  expiration 
of  term. 

Bowes,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9.  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Butz,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Dis.  June  2,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Bullman,  Jack'n,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9, 1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Bond,  Philip,  priv.     Killed  May  6,  1864,  at  the  Wilderness. 

Brook,  Jonathan,  priv.     Cap.  Aug.  21, 1864,  at  Yellow  Tav. 

Brown,  Chas.,  priv.     Not  on  rnus.  out  roll. 

Bridges,  James,  priv.     Not  on  mus.  out  roll. 

Colbrath,  Wm.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Cheney,  Jeremiah,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Curtz,  Philip,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Crocket,  Israel,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Clifton,  Allen  J.,  priv      Mus  out  Oct.  9, 1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Coif,  John,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Crawford,  Gco.,  priv.  Cap.  Dec.  14,  1«63,  in  East  Tenn., 
exchanged  Mar.  1,  1805.  Mus.  out  Mar.  6,  1865,  expir.  of  term. 

Chambers,  Chas.  H.,  priv.     Not  on  mus.  out  roll. 

Putter,  Keuben,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Doihl,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Diehl,  John  H  ,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Dulot,  George,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Dutt,  Courtland,  priv.  Cap.  Dec.  14, 1863,  exchanged  Feb. 
26,  1865.  Mus.  out  Mar.  3,  1865,  expir.  of  term. 

Dole,  Uriah,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  June  2,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Dean,  George,  priv.     Dis.  June  2,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Draher,  Wm.,  priv.  Wounded  June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Harbor. 
Died  June  21,  1864,  from  wounds  received  in  action. 

Delly,  Laurence  II.,  priv.     Deserted,  date  unknown. 

Everett,  Wm.  D.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Everett,  Joel  L.,  priv.    Deserted  Oct.  17,  1864. 

Furich,  Henry,  priv.  Wounded  at  Petersburg,  June  20,  1864. 
Absent  in  hospital  at  mus.  out. 

Frautz,  Peter,  priv.    t^ub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Fny,  Gabriel,  priv.     Absent  wounded  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Gregory,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Gosner,  Jacob  W.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expiration 
of  term. 

Gerhart.  Danl.  II.,  priv.  Dis.  on  surgeon's  certificate  Dec. 
25,  1864. 

Gumbcr,  Jacob,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Gosner,  Chas.  N.,  priv.  .  Trans,  to  Signal  Corps  Aug  1,  1863. 

Godley,  John  B.,  priv.     Trans,  to  co.  D,  April  30,  1864. 

Group,  Lewis,  priv.  Cap.  Aug.  20,  1864.  Died  at  Rich 
mond,  Va.,  Sep.  27,  1864. 

Haas,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Haas,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hill,  Edward,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805.     Yet. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      635 

Hardy,  Edward,  priv.     Wounded  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsyl- 
vania  C.  H.,  Va.     Absent  in  hospital  at  mus.  out. 

Hufsuiith,  Wm.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1805. 

Hixon,  Theo.  F,  priv,    Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Henning,  Miclil.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864.  expir.  of  term. 

Hiney,  Chas  ,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  June  2,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Raines,  Jeremiah,  priv.     Draf.     Dis.  June  2,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Halsted,  John  A.,  priv.    Trans.  Jan.  16,  1864,  to  llth  N.  II. 

Heiming,  Win.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Judge,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Krcsge,  Reuben,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  3,  1865.     Draf. 

Kustetor,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  3,  1865.     Draf. 

Knauss,  Chris.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  3,  1865.     Draf. 

Kresge,  Emanuel,  priv.     Died  at  Phila.,  Pa.,  Nov.,  7,  1864. 

Kross,  Lewis,  priv.     Not  on  mus   out  roll. 

Lee.  John  A.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lee,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Leary,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lottig,  Aaron,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Miller,   Thos.   P.,   priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Myers,   Chris.   B.,priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Myers,  Peter,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Mettler,  Philip  M.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Mixcll,  Henry,  priv.     Captured  at  Wilderness  May  6,  1864. 
Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Moore,  Wm.,  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Moser,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Miller,  Thos.,  priv.     Dis.   on  surgeon's  certificate  May  15, 

Miller,  John.  priv.     Deserted. 

McDonald,  Ptk.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McFall,  Titus,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McKeighan,  Wilson,  priv.    Mus.  out  withco.  July  27,  1865. 

Nicholas,  T.  J.,  priv.    Draf.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  date  unknown. 

Newsbaum,  Chas.,  priv.     Sub.     Des.  Dec.  14,  1864. 

Nugent,  John,  priv.     Sub.     Des.  July  2,  1865. 

Obenholzer,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with   co,  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Paul,  Geo.,  priv.    Wounded  May  6, 1864,  at  Wilderness,  Va. 
Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Poff,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Ranch,  Win.  O.,  priv.    Mus.  out  withco.  July  27,  1805. 

Reigle,  John  B.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Rickets,  Thos.,  P.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9, 1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Ricker,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Reily,  Benj.  J.,  priv.  Wounded  at  Campbell's  Station.  Died 
Nov.  28,  1863,  at  Knoxville. 

Raub,  Joshua,  priv.    Wounded  at  Campbell's  Station.    Died 
Nov.  28,  1863,  at  Knoxville. 

Ruff.  Adam.  priv.     Des.  July  28,  1864. 

Reed,  Chas.,  priv.     Des.   Nov.  25,  1804. 

Seibcrt,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 


636     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

Sharp,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  18f>5.     Vet, 

Scott,  Peter,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Scott,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Samuels,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Snyder,  Andrew,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Snyder,  Edwin  P.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Stocker,  Win.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Smith,  Stephen,  priv.     Mus.  out  withco.  July  27,  1865. 

Shook,  Abraham,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Samsell,  John  S.  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Seartbss,  Simon,  priv.     Dis.  July  18,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Searfoss,  Win.,  priv.     Mus.  out  withco.  July  27,  186"). 

Steinhoff,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Schooly,  John  H.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Snedeker,  James,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Sweeney,  Jacob  H.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expiration 
of  term. 

Sheets,  Charles,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct..  9,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Slator,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Mar.  27,  1805,  expir.  of  term. 

Smith,  Wm.  A.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Mar.  27, 1865,  expir.  of  term. 

Shick,  Win.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  date  unknown. 

Seiple,  John  H.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  15,  1865. 

Steiuer,  Rudolph,  priv.  Trans.  Jan.  9,  1865,  to  Vet.  Res. 
Corps. 

Strattford,  Win.  F.,  priv.    Killed  Dec.  13, 1862,  at  Freds'bg. 

Stone,  John,  priv.     Des.  Nov.  26,  1864. 

Stewart,  Win.,  priv.     Not  on  mus.  out  rolls. 

Snyder,  Win.  L.,  priv.     Not  on  mus.  out  rolls. 

Titus,  Joseph,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Tomer,  William,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Thompson,  Henry,  priv.  Mils,  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expiration 
of  term. 

Thatcher,  Aaron,  priv.  Trans.  Jan.  16,  1864,  to  llth  N. 
Hampshire. 

Unangst,  Thos.,  priv.  Died  Feb.  20,  1864,  at  Easton,  Pa. 
Veteran. 

Vannatta,  Danl.  W.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Woodring,  Nicholas,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Williamson,  Thos.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Wacht,  Gabriel  Z.,  priv.     Mus  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Weidnecht,  John,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Wcidnecht,  S.  C.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Woodring,  Hiram,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  9. 1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Warner,  Henry,  priv.    Dis.  March  16,  1865,  on  surg.  cer. 

Walters,  Geo.,  priv.     Dis.  March  31,  1865,  by  special  order. 

Warner,  Samuel,  priv.  Dis.  June  2,  1865,  by  general  order. 
Drafted. 

Werkcisor,  Cyrus,  priv.  Killed  June  3,  at  Cold  Harbor.  Vet. 

Wilson,  John,  priv.     Deserted  July  2,  1865. 

Wilson,  Isaac,  priv.    Not  on  mus. -out  rolls. 

Young,  Lewis  II.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  186~. 
Veteran. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEEKS.  637 

Zamaria,  Stelio,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Total  names  oil  the  rolls  174.* 


ROLL   OF  CO.   C. 

Recruited  in  Montgomery  county,  Pa. 

William  Allebaugh,  captain.  Captured  at  Spottsylvania 
C.  H.,  Va.,  May  12,  1864,  with  two  of  his  regimental  colors. 
Rejoined  his  regiment  May  1,  1865.  Promoted  lieut. -colonel 
April  23,  1865. 

William  F.  Thomas,  captain.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut. 
Sept.  19,  1862 ;  to  1st  lieut.  May  13,  1864  ;  to  captain  April  24, 
1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  Veteran. 

John  J.  Freedley,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  to  II.  Q.  M.  Oct.  17,  1861.. 
Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam.  Resigned  1863. 

Davis  Hunsicker,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  2d  lieut.  to  1st  lieut. 
Oct.  17,  1861.  Killed  at  Antietam  Sept.  17,  1862. 

Thomas  J.  Lynch,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  2d  lieut.  to  1st  lieut. 
Sept.  19,  1862.  "  Killed  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania. 

George  II.  Smith,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut. 
Aug.  8,  1864,  to  1st  lieut.  April  25,  1865.  Mus-.  out  with  co. 
July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  W.  Fair,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  1st  sergt.  Oct. 
8,  1864,  to  2d  lieut.  May  17,  1865.  Wounded  Aug.  19,  1864,  at 
Weldon  Railroad,  and  at  Petersburg,  July  3,  1864.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Nathan  II.  Ramsey,  1st  sergt.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  1st  sergt. 
May  17,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

*  Summary. — Killed — Com.  officers,  1  ;  non-com,  officers,  1 ;  pri 
vates,  5.  Died  of  wounds — Von-com.  officers,  1  ;  privates,  2.  Died 
of  disease — Privates,  2.  Died  in  rebel  prisons — Privates,  2. 
Wounded — Non-com,  officers,  1 ;  privates,  5.  Captured — Non-com, 
officers,  1;  privates,  6.  Transferred — Non-com,  officers,  2;  pri 
vates,  5.  Discharged — Com.  officers,  2  ;  non-com,  officers,  3  ;  pri 
vates,  64.  Deserted — Privates,  12.  Absent  sick,  at  muster  out  of 
co.,  4. 

Recapitulation. — Killed,  7  ;  died  of  wounds,  3  ;  died  of  disease,  2  ; 
died  in  captivity,  2 ;  wounded,  6  ;  captured,  7 ;  transferred,  7  ;  dis 
charged,  51;  deserted,  12;  absent  sick  and  wounded,  at  muster 
out,  4.  Total  casualties,  101. 

The  casualties  and  other  causes  of  the  depletion  of  the  ranks  of 
Co.  B,  are  far  more  numerous  than  the  above  table  radicates.  It 
is  to  be  seriously  regretted  that  a  more  full  and  explicit  list  could 
not  be  obtained.  Not  even  a  single  muster-out  roll  of  Co.  B,  or  any 
papers  whatever  are  to  be  found  in  the  adjutant-general's  office  that 
would  indicate  that  such  a  company  was  ever  in  existence,  or  that 
would  i^ive  the  least  clue  to  the  correct  number  of  wounded,  or  who 
were  killed,  captured,  or  died  from  disease.  One  thing  certain,  the 
company's  record  is  equal  to  any  of  its  sisters,  and  its  record  will  be 
dug  out  from  the  archives  of  State  by  some  future  legalized  historian, 
and  its  pecans  will  echo  throughout  the  country. 


638     HISTORY    OF   THE   FIFTY  FIRST   REGIMENT 

Benjamin  F.  Miller,  sergt.  Wounded  at  Antietam  Sept.  17, 
1802.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Montgomery  Smith,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Peter  Undercofler,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

William  R.  Gilbert,  sergt.  Pro.  from  corp.  to  sergt.  May 
17,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran/ 

Levi  W.  Shingle,  sergt.  Pro.  to  sergt. -major  Jan.  14,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Patrick  Kevin,  sergt.  Killed  May  6, 1864,  at  the  Wilderness. 
Was  color  sergeant  of  the  51st  P.  V.  V.  Veteran. 

William  Eastwood,  sergt.     Discharged  Jan.  10,  1863. 

Samuel  Fair,  sergt.  Pro.  2d  lieut.  in  Co.  D,  Oct.,  1861.  Killed 
at  South  Mountain  Sept.  14,  1862. 

William  Robinson,  corp.  Wounded  Nov.  16, 1863,  at  Camp 
bell's  Station,  Tenn.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

John  C.  Umstead,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Vet. 

Henry  H.  Lightcap,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Andrew  J.  Reed,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Hugh  Lynch,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Benjamin  R.  Sill,  corp.  Pro.  corp.  May  1,  1865.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  Veteran. 

Hugh  McClain,  corp.  Pro.  corp.  May  17,  1865.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  Veteran. 

William  Bean,  corp.  Pro.  corp.  May  25,  1865.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  Veteran. 

Andrew  J.  Grim,  corp.  Died  June  6,  1864,  from  wounds  re 
ceived  in  action.  Buried  in  National  Cem'y,  Arlington.  Vet. 

William  Kooker,  corp.  Killed  June  17,  1864,  at  Petersburg, 
Va.  Veteran. 

Jos.  Cornog,  corp.  Killed  June  17,  1864,  at  Petersburg, 
Va.  Veteran. 

David  Kane,  corp.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Samuel  Hart,  corp.  Sentenced  by  G.  C't  martial  to  Rip  Raps, 
Aug.,  1862.  Discharged  as  being  too  worthless  for  the  service. 

Simon  P.  Emery,  corp.  Died  of  wounds  at  Mill  Spring, 
Sept.  29,  1862. 

James  Sullivan,  corp.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antie 
tam.  Discharged  Feb.  23,  1863,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Samuel  Egolf,  corp.  Shot  through  the  kings  at  Antietam, 
Sept.  17,  1862.  Discharged  Jan.  29,  1863,  at  Milldale,  Miss. 
Re-enlisted  as  veteran  private  Jan.  31,  1864. 

Edward  D.  Johnson,  muse.    Pro.  drum  major  March  1,  1865. 

Allen,  Thomas,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Mus.  out  Sept.  13, 1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Baum,  Levi,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862.  Trans,  to  Vet. 
Res.  Corps  Sept.,  1863. 

Bell,  Andrew  J.,  priv.    Capt'd  at  North  Ann,  May  27, 1864. 

Briggs,  Christopher,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Black,  Wui.  F.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Bryn,  Wm.  M.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Sub. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      639 

Barclay,  Robt.,  priv.     Mus.  out  willi  co.  July  27,  18G5.    Sub. 

Bryant,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus   out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Brauntlinger,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Barry,  Win.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept.  13,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Breish,  George  W.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Sept.  13,  1864,  expir.  of 
term. 

Bruner,  Jacob,  priv.    Died  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  May  20, 1865. 

Brown,  Richard,  priv.     Deserter. 

Custer,  Abraham,  priv.  Severely  wounded  April  19,  1862, 
at  Camden,  N.  C.  Discharged  21,  1863,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Custer,  Paul  H.,  priv.  Died  of  disease  July  17,  1863,  at 
Jackson,  Miss. 

Creamer,  John,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Cook,  John  J.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Cook,  Thos.  R.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Condon,  James,  priv.     Dis.  June  2,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Carson,  Michael,  priv.     Deserted  April  4,  1865.     Sub. 

Deeds,  Albert,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Dillon,  Patrick,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Darling,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Davis,  Henry,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Dis.  on  account  of  wounds. 

Detwiler,  Joseph  W.,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at 
Fredericksburg.  Dis.  on  account  of  wounds  April  18,  1863. 

Dillon,  Michael,  priv.  Wounded  Nov.  19,  1863,  at  Knox- 
ville,  E.  Tenn.  Missing  at  Spottsylvania  C.  II.,  May  12,  1864. 
Veteran. 

Delia ven,  Reuben,  priv.   Died  July  18, 1863,  at  Jackson,  Miss. 

Davis,  Thos.,  priv.     Dis.  May  17,  1862.     Disability. 

Davis,  John  T.,  priv.    Absent  sick,  at  inus.  out  of  co. 

Dean,  Samuel,  priv.  Died  at  Charleston,  S.  C.,  Sept.  20, 
1864.  Veteran. 

Dougherty,  Michael,  priv.  Died  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  Sept. 
20,  1864. 

Duffy,  John,  priv.    Deserted  Oct.  26,  186 i.     Substitute. 

Espenship,  H.  D.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.   Vet. 

Espenship,  W.  I.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Espenship,  Enos  D.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Elliott,  Jas.  W.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805.    Vet. 

Emery,  John  E.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Espenship,  David,  priv.  Dis.  on  surg.  cert.*  Sept.  20,  1864. 
Veteran. 

Erhard,  Henry,  priv.  Died  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  July  9, 1864, 
from  wounds. 

Fizone,  Jacob,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1835.    Vet. 

Fox,  Charles  R.,  priv.  Wounded  at  Fredericksburg  Dec. 
13,  1862.  Absent  on  furlough  at  mus.  out  of  co.  Veteran. 

Fry,  Henry,  priv.  Died  of  disease  Oct.  10,  1802,  at  Wash 
ington,  D.  C. 

Fillman,  Oliver  A.  Dis.  May  29,  1863,  at  Rhode  Island,  for 
wounds  received  in  action. 

Fox,  William  H.  R.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 


640     HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Fox,  Franklin  "R.,priv.   Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Vd. 

Force,  Emanuel,  priv.    Absent  in  arrest  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Fitzpatrick,  Patrick,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  18(5. 
Veteran. 

Farrel,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Fry,  Samuel  J.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Favinger,  Josiah  M.,  priv.    Dis.  July  6,  1865,  for  wounds  re 
ceived  in  action. 

Ferrington,  Matthew,  priv.    Dis.  Dec.  31,  1862,  at  Wash. 

Fry,  Henry  H.,  priv.    Killed  in  front  of  Petersburg  June  17, 
1864. 

Gunn,  William,  priv.    Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Veteran. 

Gunn,  James,  priv.     Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericks- 
lurg,  Va.    Mus.  out  Sept.  13,  1864,  expir.  of  term. 

Gross,  Marcus  A.,  priv.     Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antic- 
tarn.     Absent  in  arrest  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Garner,  Eli,  priv.     Died  Nov.  23,  1861,  at  Harrisburg,  Pa. 
of  disease. 

Grubb,  Franklin,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Green,  Jos.,  priv.     Absent  wounded,  at  mus.  out  of  co.    Sub. 

Gilland,  Wm.,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  on  surg.  cert.  Dec.  21, 
1864. 

Gunter,  Henry,  priv.     Drafted.     Killed  at  Petersburg,  Feb. 
18,  1865. 

Gibbs,  Wm.,  priv.    Sub.    Des.  April  4,  1865. 

Hallowell,  John,  priv.     Died  of  wounds  Nov.  14,  1862,  at 
Mill  Springs,  Md.,  received  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Hughes,  Henry  C.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  F,  Oct.  16,  1861,  at 
Harrisburg. 

Hartenstine,  Valentine,  priv.     Des.   Feb.  1,   1862.     Taken 
prisoner  and  died  in  rebel  prison. 

Hallman,  Jesse,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hauff,  Fred.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Hotchkiss,  Win.,  priv.    Absent  wounded,  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Holden,  Geo.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Hamilton,  "Elwood,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Hoover,  Jacob,  priv.     Draf.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Hunt.  Jas.,  priv.     Draf.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Hendricks,  Franklin,  priv.      Killed  June  17,*1864,  at  Peters- 
bu  g.    Veteran. 

Inglis,  Robt.  A.,  priv.     Dis.  by  S.  0.  Nov.  25,  1864. 

Jago,  Henry,  priv.     Wounded  Sept.   17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Absent  wounded,  at  mus.  out  of  co.     Veteran. 

Johnson,  Bcnj.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Johnson,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Jones,  Ed.  C.,  priv.    MUF.  out  Sept.  13,1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Johns,  Fred.  W.,  priv.     Mus.  out.   Sept.  13,  1864,  expr.  of 
term. 

Kile,  Abraham,  priv.     Trans,  to  Inv.  Corps  Nov.  16,  1863, 
at  Camp  Nelson,  Ky. 

Kevin,  Gto.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      641 

Keely,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Keeler,  Wm.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kooker,  Benj.,  priv.     Miss,  at  Spotlsylvauia  C.  H.  May  12, 
1804.     Veteran. 

Kelly,  Peter,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kevin,  Joshua  A.,  priv.     Captured.    Died  at  Andersonville, 
Ga.,  Sept,  25,  1864.     Veteran. 

Lath,  Wm.  H.,  priv.    Died  from  wounds  Oct.  3, 1862.  Buried 
in  Military  Asylum  Cemetery. 

Lightcap,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  Ju1}'  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Leach,  Jos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Latham,  Jas.  N.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Lape,  Abr.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Lynch,  Thos.  J.,  priv.    Killed  at  Spottsylvania  May  12, 1864. 
Buried  in  Wilderness  burial  grounds. 

Morgan,  Griffith  E.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Miller,  Geo.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Miller,  Andrew,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Myers,  Peter,  priv.     DCS.  May  12,  1864. 

Murphy,  James,  priv.     Died  Aug.  1, 1862,  at  Beaufort,  N  C., 
of  disease. 

Murphy,  James,  priv.    Died  Oct.  20,  1862.    Buried  in  Mount 
Olivet  Cemetery,  Frederick,  Md. 

Mercer,  Geo.,  priv.    Died  of  wounds  Oct.  3,  1862. 

Munshower,  Wm.,  priv.    Died  of  wounds  Oct   3,  1832. 

McDade,  Patrick,  priv.     Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps  Nov.  16, 
1863.     Re-enlisted  Jan.  14,  18P>5.    Mus.  out  with  co. 

McDevitt,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McManamy,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  j'uly  27,  1865. 

McVeigh,  Nathaniel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McGill,  John  H.,  priv.     Sub.     Trans,  to  201st  P.  V.  Feb.  3, 
1865. 

McGinly,  Geo.,   priv.     Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date  un 
known.     Veteran. 

McFaul,  John,  priv.    Sub.   Killed  at  Petersburg  Feb.  13.  1865. 

McBride,  Owen,  priv.     Deserted.     Veteran. 

McMullen,  Michl.,  priv.    Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg. 

McMenamee,  Jeremiah,  priv.     DCS.  May  7,  1863,  at  Lancas 
ter,  Kv. 

McMullen,  John,  priv.    Des.  May  7,  1863,  at  Lancaster,  Ky. 

Newman,  Geo.,  priv.    Draf.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Ostrander,  Eli  H.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  13,  1865. 

O'Neal,  Andrew  J.     Prisoner  from  May  7,  1864,  to  April  25, 
1865.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  24,  1865.    Veteran. 

Paul,  Sylvester,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Peters,  John  II.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  186  ). 

Pickup,  Geo.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1861.     Vet. 

Pfifer,  Chas.,  priv.     Dis.  on  surg.  cert.  June  9,  1865. 

Parson,  John  C.,  priv.     Dis.  on  surg.  cert.  June  9,  1865. 

Plunket,  John,  priv.    Taken  prisoner  April  19, 1862,  at  Cam- 
den,  N.  C. 

23* 


642      HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Peters,  Michael,  priv.  Dis.  for  disability  Jan.  29,  18G3,  at 
Washington. 

Rogan,  Patrick,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 
Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam.  Dis.  on  account  of 
wounds  Mar.  4,  1868.  Re-enlisted  March,  1864. 

Rinker,  Jacob  B.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Roeder,  Lewis,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Read,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Radebaugh,  Charles,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  S. 
Mountain,  Md.  Des.  Dec.  8,  1862,  at  Baltimore.  Mus.  out 
Sept.  13,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Rogers,  Allen,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept.  13,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Robinson,  Morris,  priv.  Died  June  15,  1862,  at  Newport 
News,  of  disease. 

Springer,  John  M.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Smith,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Shaner,  Wash.  M.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Schmearer,  C.  B.,  priv.    Mus,  out  with  co.  July"27,  1865. 

Sullivan,  Thos.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Sullivan,  Jas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Spare,  David  R.,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Freder- 
icksburg,  Va.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Sherman,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Shearer,  Samuel  J.,  priv.    Absent  in  arrest  at  mus.  out. 

Sortman,  Henry,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Sub. 

Stout,  Geo.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Smith,  Benj.  F.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  23,  1865. 

Shaffer,  Jacob  W.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  5,  1865. 

Steltz,  Wm.  C.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Sept.  13,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Sloop,  Hilary,  priv.  Captured.  Died  June  10,  1864,  at 
Andersonville. 

Stoffet,  Philip,  priv.  Captured.  Died  March  29,  1865,  at 
Wilmington,  N.  C. 

Sullivan,  Patk.,  priv.    Dis.  May  24,  1862,  at  Newborn,  N.  C. 

Snyder,  John,  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  23,  1862,  at  Washington. 

Sweeney,  George,  priv.  Killed  Dec.  13, 1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg,  Va. 

Tommy,  Stephen,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Tochler,  Abraham,  priv.  Dis.  April  15,  1865,  for  wounds 
received  in  action. 

Tinney,  Michael,  priv.     Dis.  by  gen.  order  June  9,  1865. 

Trumbull,  Geo.  B.,  priv.     Sub.   ^Deserted  Oct.  26,  1864. 

Temperly,  Thos.,  priv.    Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps  Sept.  1,  1863. 

Umstead,  Jacob  H.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Underkofler,  H.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Upright,  John,  priv.     Killed  June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Harbor. 

Walt,  Abraham,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Discharged  on  account  of  wounds  April  18,  1863.  Re-enlisted 
again  as  a  veteran.  Wounded  at  Bethesda  Church  June  1 , 1864. 
Absent  wounded  at  mus.  out  of  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

White,  Charles,  priv.  Dis.  onsurgeon'scertif.,  date  unknown. 

Walters,  Jacob,  priv,     Mus.  out  with  co. 

Wood,  Henry  P.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Veteran. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      643 

Waters,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co. 

Yerger,  Mark  L.,  priv.  Absent  wounded  at  mus.  out  of  co. 
Veteran. 

Young,  Henry  K.,  priv.  Sub.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 
1865. 

Young,  Joseph  C.,  priv.  Trans,  to  Co.  F  Oct.  16,  1861,  at 
Harrisburg. 

Total,  195  names.* 


ROLL  OF  CO.  D. 

Recruited  at  Norristown,  Montgomery  County,  Pa. 

Edward  Schall.  captain.     Resigned  April  14,  1863. 

Lewis  Hallrnan,  captain.  Pro.  from  1st  lieut.  to  capt.  April 
14,  1863.  Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps  Aug.  6,  1864,  on  account  of 
wound  received  at  Fredericksburg,  Dec.  13,  1862. 

Win.  W.  Owen,  capt.  Pro  from  1st  lieut.  of  Co.  F  to  capt. 
of  Co.  D,  Sept.  1,  1864.  Wounded  seriously  May  6, 1864,  at  the 
Wilderness.  Mus.  out  with  co.  Veteran. 

John  Gilligan,  1st  lieut.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  An  tie- 
tarn.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  1st  lieut.  Aug.  12,  1864.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  Veteran. 

*  A  complete  list  of  the  wounded  cannot  be  given,  as  the  material 
for  such  a  purpose  is  not  to  be  found  in  the  adjutant-general's  office  ; 
but  the  list  of  deceased,  captured,  transferred,  and  discharged  soldiers, 
will  be  found  reliable  and  complete. 

Recapitulation.  —  Killed  —  Commissioned  officers,  2;  non.-com. 
officers,  4;  privates,  8.  Died  from  wounds — Non.-com.  officers,  2. 
privates,  7.  Died  from  disease — Privates,  10.  Died  in  rebel  prisons — 
Privates,  4.  Wounded  two  or  more  times — Com.  officers,  1  ;  privates, 
2.  Wounded  once — Com.  officers,  1 ;  non.-com.  officers,  5  ;  privates, 
27.  Captured — Com.  officers,  1 ;  privates,  8.  Transferred — Privates, 
8.  Discharged  on  account  of  wounds  and  disability — Privates,  35; 
non.-com.  officers,  4.  Resigned — Com -officers,  1.  Deserted — Pri 
vates,  11. 

Summary. — Total  killed  in  action,  14  ;  died  of  wounds,  9  ;  died  of 
disease,  19  ;  died  in  rebel  prisons,  4  ;  wounded,  30  ;  captured,  9  ;  trans 
ferred,  8;  discharged,  39;  resigned,  1;  deserted,  11.  Grand  total 
loss,  141. 

This  list  is  correct  and  i-eliable  from  the  original  enlistment  up  to 
January  1,  ltG4  ;  but  it  can  readily  be  perceived  that  from  that  date 
up  to  the  final  discharge  of  the  company  that  only  a  very  few  cases 
of  wounded  appear  on  the  list.  The  company  was  hotly  engaged  at 
the  battle  of  the  Wilderness  ;  still  hotter  at  Spottsylvania  C.  II. ; 
equally  so  at  Cold  Harbor  ;  was  the  target  in  the  charge,  June  17, 1804, 
on  Petersburg,  as  also  at  the  Yellow  Tavern  and  Hatcher's  Run  ;  and 
its  loss  in  those  battles  of  wounded  must  have  been  immense,  and  it  is 
a  source  of  regret  that  it  cannot  be  obtained.  The  writer  saw  seven 
teen  wounded  of  Co.  C  at  the  battle  at  the  Yellow  Tavern  while  the 
battle  was  raging,  all  of  which  has  escaped  his  memory,  with  one 
exception  ;  that  one  is  Sergt.  Jno.  W.  Fair,  who  was  severely  wounded 
in  the  foot. 


HISTOKY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Saml.,  Fair,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  of  Co.  C.,  to  2d  lieut. 
Oct.  1,  3801.  Wounded  at  South  Mountain  Sept.  14,  1862. 
Died  Sept.  21,  1862,  from  wounds. 

Jonathan  Swallow,  2d  lieut.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at 
Fredericksburg,  severely.  Resigned  Mar.  15,  1864,  on  account 
of  wounds. 

Isaac  Fizone,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  2d  lieut.  May 
3,  1864,  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericksburg.  Killed 
June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Harbor,  Va.  Veteran. 

David  Long,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  2d  lieut.,  June 
25,  1864.  Mustered  out  with  company  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  Powell,  1st  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Henry  Foreman,  sergt.  Discharged  Mar.  24,  1865,  on  ac 
count  of  wounds  received  in  action.  Veteran. 

Wm.  Dignan,  sergt.  Wounded  at  Fredericksburg,  Dec.  13, 
1862.  Killed  June  18,  1864,  at  Petersburg  Va.  Veteran. 

Wm.  D.  Jenkins,  sergt.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antic- 
tarn.  Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  McNulty,  sergt.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  186?,  at  Fred 
ericksburg.  Mustered  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  R.  Grey,  sergt.     Must,  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Freeman  S.  Davis,  sergt.  Wounded  Dec  .  13,  1862,  at 
Fredericksburg.  Mus.  out  Sept.,  19, 1864.  Expiration  of  term. 

Walter  M.  Thompson,  sergt,  Mustered  out  Oct.  15,  1864. 
Expiration  of  term. 

Penrose  W.  Glair,  sergt.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Edwin  Bennett,  sergt.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antie- 
tam.  Discharged  on  surgeon's  certificate,  Nov.  14,  1862. 

John  L.  McCoy,  corpl.  Mustered  out  with  company,  July 
27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Andrew  Fair,  corpl.  Mustered  out  with  company,  July  27, 
1865.  Veteran. 

John  Dunn,  corpl.  Served  in  Benjamin's  battery,  from 
Oct.  1,  1863,  to  Jan.  1,  1864,  was  in  the  night  attack  on  Fort 
Sanders,  Knoxville,  and  succeeded  in  capturing  a  rebel  officer 
by  twisting  a  battery  screw  into  an  officer's  clothing  and  pulling 
him  into  the  fort  over  the  parapet.  Mustered  out  with  com 
pany.  Veteran. 

Jas.  Powers,  corpl.    Mustered  out  with  company.    Veteran. 

Nicholas  Murphy,  corp.     Mustered  out  with  co.    Veteran. 

Albert  List,  corpl.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericks 
burg.  Mustered  out  with  company  Ju'y  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  Sutch,  corpl.  Mus.  out  Sept.  19,  1864.  Expiration  of 
term. 

John  Beal,  corpl.  Mustered  out  Sept.  19,  1864.  Expiration 
of  term.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericksburg. 

Isaac  N.  Yocum,  corpl.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Wm.  W.  Smith,  corpl.  Wounded  Aug.  30,  1862,  at  Bull 
Run.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps.  March  23,  1865.  Veteran. 

Isaac  Tolan,  corpl.  Discharged  Aug.  2,  1863,  at  Hampton, 
Va.  Re- enlisted  as  a  veteran.  Deserted  Sept.  3,  1864. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  645 

Geo.  W.  Bowman,  covpl.     Died  Feb.  4, 18G2,  on  board  of  the 
steamer  Cossack,  on  Pamlico  sound,  N.  Carolina. 

Richard  Lewis,  corpl.     Pied  August  11,  1803,  on  hoard  U.  S. 
Steamer  Lycoming,  Mississippi  river. 

Albert  Wood,  muse.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Wm.  S.  Lauback,  muse.     Died  at  Newport,  R.  Island,  July 
27,  1864. 

Jos.  Moyer,  muse.     Dis.  June  23,  1862,  at  Newbern,  N.  C. 

Anderson,  Joseph,  priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Aronimer,  Albert,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Ackers,  Wm.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Andrews,  Thos.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Boyd,  Thos.,  priv.     Mustered  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Beswick,  Chas.,  priv.     Mustered  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Bumgardner,  Lewis,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Browning,  Thos.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  muster  out. 

Buehler,  George,  priv.     Sub.    Mustered  out  with  company. 

Bancurt,  Jonathan,  priv.     Drat'.   Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2, 1865. 

Bodey,  Win.  H.,  priv.     Died  May  16,  1864,  of  wounds  re 
ceived  at  Spottsylvania. 

Blakeney,  Chas.,  priv.     Died  at  York,  Pa.,  April  8,  1865. 

Barrett,  George,  priv.    Sub.     Deserted  June  17,  1865. 

Boyle,  John  W.,  priv.  Trail,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  Sept  3,  1863. 

Bacon,  Augustus,  priv.     Deserted  December  11,  1861. 

Clark,  Saml.  L.,priv.     Mustered  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Cramer,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.,  July  27,  1865. 

Clare,  Jefferson  C.,  priv.     Missing  at  Spottsylvania,  May  12, 
1864.     Supposed  to  have  been  killed. 

Creighlon,    Noble,   priv.     Wounded  May   6,    1804,    at    the 
Wilderness.     Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co.     Veteran. 

Cornog,  Addison,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co. 

Clark,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Colpetzer,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Cook,  Wm.  B.,  priv.      Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Drafted. 

Cassedy,  Jeremiah,  priv.     Captured.     Died  at  Salisbury,  N. 
C.,  Dec.  4,  1864. 

Creighton,  Erwin,  priv.     Trans,   to  Vet.   Res.  Corps,   Nov. 
6,  1863. 

Conway,  James,  priv.     Died  Jan.  16,  1862,  off  Hatteras  Inlet. 

Crouthamel,  Adam,  priv.    Deserted  July  5,   1862,  at  New 
port  Ne\vs,  Va. 

Dunbar,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  o  t  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Delhi,  Wm.  F.-  priv.     Mtis.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Doan,  Wm.   F.,   priv.     Drafted.     Discharged   for  disability 
Sept,  29,  1864. 

Diamond,  Patk.,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  May  9,  1862. 

Dellaven,  John,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  Feb.  21,  1863. 

Davis,  Chas.,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  June  F,  1862. 

Dewees,  Wm.,  priv.     Deserted  Dec.'ll,  1861. 

Eilenburg,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 


646     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Essick,  Wm.,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Dis.  on  surgn's  certificate  Jan.  12,  1864.  Veteran. 

Evans,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Drafted. 

Easton,  Walter,  priv.  Killed  April  8, 1864,  accidentally.  Draf. 

Earls,  John,  priv.  Wounded  September  17,  1864,  at  Antie 
tam,  with  loss  of  arm.  Dis.  March  27,  1863. 

Furlong,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co. 

Fisher,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Fleming,  Hugh,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Forbes,  Michael,  priv.  Dis.  Dec.  21,  1864,  for  disability. 
Drafted. 

Fisher,  Hiram  C.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Fisher,  Harman  G.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Sept.  19,  1864.  Expi 
ration  of  term. 

Frank,  Barnard,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2, 1865. 

Fizone,  Mordecai,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  27,  1865. 

Ferguson,  Wm.,  priv.     Deserted  April  3,  1865.     Sub. 

Fleck,  John  R,  priv.  Deserted  April  3,  1865.  Dis.  by  S. 
O.  July  21, 1865.  Veteran. 

Faulkner,  W.,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Dis.  on  account  of  wounds  Nov.  27,  1862.  ' 

Fair,  Chas.,  priv.     Dis.  on  account  of  disability  Oct.  31, 1862. 

Gartner,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Grey,  Alfred  K,  priv.  Must,  out  with  co.  Wounded  Dec. 
13,  1862,  at  Fredericksburg.  Veteran. 

Godley,  John  B.,  priv.     Killed  at  Petersburg,  July  6,  1864. 

Geanger,  Frank,  priv.     Deserted  April  3,  1865.    Sub. 

Guyer,  John,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  Feb.  21,  1863. 

Guyer,  John  G.,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
ericksburg.  Dis.  April  4,  1863,  at  Washington. 

Guyder,  John,  priv.     Dis.  May  31,  1862,  at  Newborn,  N.  C. 

Guyer,  Geo.  W.,  priv.    Dis.  Oct.  31,  1862,  at  Harrisburg. 

Gillan,  Hector,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps  Nov.  15,  1863. 

Hudson,  Wm.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out  of  co.     Sub. 

Hammond,  Jno.,  priv.    Mus  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Hagan,  Patk.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
.  Hummel,  Calvin,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hunt,  Danl.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hager,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draft. 

Ilixon,  Theodore,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  9,  1864. 

Houser,  Joseph,  priv.     Deserted  July  12,  1865.     Sub. 

Hayberry,  George,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  An 
tietam.  Died  of  wounds  Oct.  18,  1862. 

Haiues,  Henry,  priv.    Deserted  Dec.  11,  1861,  from  Harrisbg. 

Horan,  Michael,  priv.    Dis.  Dec.  31,  1861,  for  disability. 

Ilenshall,  Jno.  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  31,  1861,  for  disability. 

Hamburger,  Wm.  priv.,  Wounded  at  Antietam  Sept.  17, 
1862.  Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps  Nov.  6,  1863. 

Johnson,  John,  priv.  Missing  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.  May 
12,  1864.  Supposed  killed.  Was  wounded  at  Newbern  N.  C. 
March  14,  1862.  Veteran. 

Jones,  Warren,  Priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  6,  1865. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  647 

Kane,  John,  priv.     Mas.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kobba,  Fredk,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Drafted. 
Keppler,  Wm.,  priv.    Deserted  June  14,  1865.     Sub. 

Kelley,  James,  priv.     Deserted  June  13,  1865.     Sub. 

Kay,  Samuel,  priv.   Killed  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South  Mountain. 

Kemmerer,  Benj.,  priv.      Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredksbg. 

Lancaster,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Lukens,  Elwood,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred- 
ericksburg.  Mus.  out  with  co.  Veteran. 

Ly singer.  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Veteran. 

Lybig,  Jonathan,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Lindner,  Samuel,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draft. 

Lonsdale,  J.  Wesley,  priv.  Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
ericksburg. 

Mogee,  Wm.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  Dis.  for  disability 
March,  5,  1863.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862.  Re-enlisted. 

Montgomery,  T.  J.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co. 

Moocle,  Lemuel,  priv.  Captured  at  North  Ann,  May  27, 
1864.  Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Mauchey,  Joseph,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Myers,  Joseph,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Drafted. 

Moore,  Henry  C.,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  11, 1865.  Wounded 
at  Fredericksburg  Dec.  13.  1862. 

Messersmith,  J.  II.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.  Draft. 

Michaels,  John  A.,  priv.     Deserted  June  3,  1865.     Sub. 

Mogee,  John.  priv.     Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericksburg. 

McNamara,  Patk.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co. 

McDade,  Saml.,  priv.     Wounded  Sept.  17, 1862,  at  Antietam. 

McDade,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McDade,  Danl.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McKenna,  Peter,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McLoughlin,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 
Substitute. 

McCluskey,  Barnard.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Mc.Curry,  James,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  11,  1^6").     Sub. 

McKenna,  James,  priv.  Killed  at  Petersburg  June  21,  1864. 
Veteran. 

McConnell,  Owen,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain.  Discharged  1863. 

McQuarness,  Jas.,  priv.  Accidentally  killed  August  16, 
1863,  on  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Railroad,  by  the  smashing  of  the 
train  of  cars  in  which  the  51st  P.  V.  was  on  transit  from  Vieks- 
burg  to  Cincinnati.  Buried  at  a  small  town  called  u  Shoals," 
in  the  vicinitv  of  the  "  smash  up." 

Mooney,  Michael,  priv.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

McMcekcn,  Thos.,  priv.     Dis,  June  11,  1863,  for  disability. 

McManamy,  Wm.,  priv.  Wounded  Sep.  17,  1862,  at  Antie 
tam.  Captured  at  Snicker's  Gap  March  4,  1863.  Dis.  March 
4,  1863,  for  disability. 

McCoy,  Uriah,  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  31,  1862,  for  disability. 

McKessick,  Hugh,  priv.  Deserted  Feb.  10,  1863,  again  July 
4,  1863. 

Miller,  John  R.,  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  2,  1863,  for  disability. 


648     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Norris,  Robert,  priv.     Deserted  Dec.  11,  1861. 

O'Neil,  Dennis,  priv.  Wounded  Aug.  30,  1862,  at  Bull  Run. 
Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps  Nov.  6,  1863.  Re-enlisted  Feb.  28, 
1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  Veteran. 

O'Donnell,  Barney,  priv.  Died  while  home  on  veteran  fur 
lough  March  10,  1864.'  Veteran. 

Olenwine,  George,  priv.     Died  May  1864. 

Peasley,  David,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co. 

Peterson,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Price,  Amos  M.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draft. 

Porter,  Alfred,  priv.     Deserted  April  3,  1865.     Sub. 

Pollock,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  May  29,  1862,  for  disability. 

Rafferty,  Wm. ,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Sub. 

Robinson,  Robt.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draft. 

Rhode,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  Sept,  27,  1864,  for  disability. 

Raifsuyder,  Wm.,  priv.     Trans,  to  co.  K.  Nov.  11, 1864. 

Roshon,  John,  priv.  Died  at  Petersburg  from  wounds  Aug. 
22,  1864. 

Rex,  Owen,  priv.  Wounded  Mar.  14,  1862,  at  the  taking  of 
Newbern,  N.  C.  Wounded  again  April  19,  1862,  at  Camden, 
N.  C.  and  again  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericksburg.  Dis.  on 
account  of  wounds  June  23,  1863. 

Richards,  John,  priv.  Died  of  wounds  Sept.  26,  1862. 
Buried  in  Military  Cemetery  D.  C 

Reider,  Jacob,  priv.     Dis.  May  1,  1862,  at  Newbern,  N.  C. 

Rhoads,  Thos.,  priv.     Deserted  July  11,  1865.     Sub. 

Smith,  Nathan,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Sub. 

Smith,  Thos.  D.,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
ericksburg.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Sloan,  Isaac,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1802,  at  Antietam. 
Dis.  Aug.  2,  1863. 

Sharp,  Saml.,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg.  Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps  Nov.  6,  1863. 

Sutch,  Henry,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg.  Trans,  to  Invalid  Corps  Nov.  15,  1863. 

Shaffer,  Geo.,  priv.  Died  of  disease  Jan.  2,  1862,  on  the 
Cossack. 

Sutch,  Thos.  B.,  priv.     Dis.  May  21,  1862,  for  disability. 

Smith,  John,  priv.     Dis.  Nov.  27,  1862,  for  disability. 

Smedley,  Benj.,  priv.     Dis  June  23,  1862,  for  .disability. 

Sutch,  Benj.,  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  13,  1863,  for  disability, 

Schall,  W.  Percy,  priv.  Captured  Aug.  20,  1862,  at  Kelly 'a 
Ford,  Va.  Dis.  by  S.  O.  Jan.  31,  1864.  Veteran. 

Stadenmayer,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  Co.  July  27,  1865. 

Spotts,  Joseph,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Schlunkofer,  Geo.,  priv.  Sub.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Staunton,  Ever't  H.  priv.  Wounded  at  Petersburg  Dec.  8, 
1864.  Absent  at  muster  out. 

Sands,  Jacob,  priv.  Sub.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Schnier,  Conrad,  priv.  Sub.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Smedley,  Isaiah  F.,  priv.     Mus.   out  Sept.  19,  1864.     Ex 
piration  of  term. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      649 

Smedley,  Hunter,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept.  19, 1864.  Expiration 
of  term. 

Smedley,  Mifflin,  priv.    Mus.  out  Sept.  19,  1864.     Expiration 
of  term. 

Smith,  Alfred,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept  19,  1864.     Expiration 
of  term. 

Sarba,  John,  priv.  Sub.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  Hay,  27,  1865. 

Smith,  Winfield  S.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  16,  1865. 

Sarba,  Joseph,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  K  Nov.  11,  1864. 

Saurwine,  Paul  L.,  priv.     Died  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilderness. 

Showalter,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Killed  May  22,  1864. 

Smith,  Wm.,  priv.    Sub.    Deserted  June  13,  1865. 

Smith,  Albert,  priv.     Mus.  out  on  expiration  of  term. 

Tyge,  Anthony,  priv.    Drafted.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Thomas,  Geo.  W.,priv.  Draft.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  13,  1865. 

Thorp,  Stephen,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  24,  1865. 

Vanfossen,  Hiram,  priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.  July  27,  1865, 
Veteran. 

Valentine,  Aaron,  priv.    Draft.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  25,  1865. 

Vanfossen,   Thos  ,  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  26,  1863,  on  account  of 
wounds  received  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericksburg. 

Weidner,    Josiah,   priv.     Died  Dec.  2,  1861,  of  disease   at 
Norristown. 

Weidner,  Wm.  W.,  priv.     Died  April  16,  1862,  of  wounds 
received  at  Newbern. 

Whitehead,  Jas.,  priv.     Captured  Aug.  20,  1862,  at  Kelly's 
Ford,  Va.     Discharged  for  disability  Jan.  4,  1863. 

Werkeiser,  Geo.,  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  2,  1863,  for  disability. 

Warst,  John  H.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Sub. 

Wampold,  Philip,  priv.     Captured  at  North  Ann   May  27, 
1864.     Absent  at  mus.  out. 

Wherle,  Andrew,  priv.    Captured  at  North  Ann  May  27, 
1864.     Absent  at  mus.  out. 

Ward,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Walter,  Jackson  H.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  29,  1865. 

Widger,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept.  19,  1864.     Expiration 
of  term. 

Wanamaker,  Tar.  Sub.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  14,  1865. 

Weidnecht,  John,  priv.    Trans,  to  Co  B.  Oct.  9,  1864. 

Weidnecht,  Saml.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B.  Oct.  9,  1864. 

West,  Joseph,  priv.  Sub.     Deserted  June  3,  1865. 

Ward,  Hugh,  priv.     Deserted  June  21,  1865. 
?  Yost,  Danl.  R.,  priv.     Wounded  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.  May 
12,  1864.     Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Yerkes,  David  H.,  priv.     Killed  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilderness. 

Yeager,  Francis,  priv.     Deserted  June  17,  1864. 

Yarnall,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
ericksburg.     Dis.  Mar.  7,  1863,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Zerner,  Franz E.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Sub. 

Total  names  on  the  rolls,  219.* 

*  Summary  of  Casualties. — Killed — Commissioned  officers,  1 ;  non- 
com,  officers,  1 ;  privates  10.     Died  from  wounds — Com.  officers,  1 ; 


650     HISTOKY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

ROLL  OF   CO.    E. 

Recruited  at  Mifflinburg. 

G.  H.  Haasenplug,  captain.     Dis.  by  S.  O.  June  11,  1864. 
Win.  R.  Foster,  ctfpt.     Pro.  from  2d  to  1st  Rent.  Sept.   10, 

1863.  to  capt.  July  13,  1864,  to  brevet-major  March  13,  1865. 
Mus.  out  with  co. "July  27,  1865. 

Jno.  A.  Morris,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  to  assistant  quarter-master, 
and  transferred  to  Gen.  Burnside's  staff  March  16,  1863. 

Francis  R.  Frey,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  1st  lieut. 
Jan  13,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Martin  L.  Schock,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut. 
Jan.  12,  1864,  to  1st  lieut.  and  adjutant  May  2,  1864. 

James  L.  Seebold,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut. 
May  2,  1864,  com.  1st  lieut.  June  12,  1864,  not  mustered.  Dis 
charged  by  special  order,  Dec.  10,  1864. 

Geo.  C.  Gutelius,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt. -major  Jan.  14, 
1865,  to  2d  lieut.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  M.  Wierman,  1st  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 
1865.  Veteran. 

Thomas  D.  Reed,  1st  sergt.    Pro.  to  1st  lieut.  Co.  G,  Nov.  23, 

1864.  Veteran. 

Ellriclge  G.  Maize,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Charles  Mills,  sergt.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet, 
Cornelius  Edelman,  sergt.    Pro.  from  corp.  to  sergt.  Jan.  15, 

1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Veteran. 

George  Diehl,  sergt.  Dis.  July  11,  1865,  for  wounds  re 
ceived  in  action.  Veteran. 

Lewis  G.  Titus,  sergt.  Died  Jan.  17,  1863,  from  wounds  re 
ceived  Dec.  18,  1862,  ^at  Fredericksburg,  Va. 

John  H.  Sortman,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

privates,  7.  Killed  by  accident— Privates,  2.  Died  from  disease — 
Non-com,  officers,  5 ;  privates,  6.  Died  in  rebel  captivity,  2. 
Wounded — Com.  officers,  5  ;  non-com,  officers,  10  ;  privates.,  27. 
Captured — Privates,  7.  Transferred — Com.  officers,  1;  non-com, 
officers,  I  ;  privates,  12.  Resignations — Com.  officers,  2.  Dis 
charged  for  disability,  on  account  of  wounds,  and  expiration  of  term, 
71;  deserted,  21;  missing,  2.— Total,  114.  Add  deaths,  34; 
wounded  42. — Grand  total  of  casualties,  190. 

The  above  list,  roll,  and  table  can  be  relied  on  as  being  correct  as 
far  as  it  goes.  It  reaches  but  a  very  few  cases  of  casualties,  such 
as  the  wounded  during  the  veteran  organization,  as  those  cases  are 
not  to  be  found  on  the  papers  in  the  adjutant-general's  office.  Still 
the  studious  reader  can  judge  from  what  Co.  D  has  suffered  in 
its  original  enlistment— that  it  did  not  stand  at  "ground  arms" 
while  its  sister  companies  were  begrimed  with  powder  and  the 
smoke  of  battle  during  their  veteran  organization.  The  men  have  a 
right  to  be  proud  of  their  officers,  and  the  officers  an  equal  right  to  be 
proud  of  their  men. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      651 

Cyrus  A.  Eaton,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Peter  Strublc,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Isaac  Treat,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Daniel  High,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805.     Vet. 

Ebert  Sprowles,  corp.  Pro.  corp.  June  2,  1805.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  July  27,  1805.  Veteran. 

William  Kelclmer,  corp.  Pro.  corp.  June  2,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Isaac  G.  Magee,  corp.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1805. 

Adam  Gluse,  corp.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1805. 

Thomas  F.  Search,  corp.     Trans,  to  Co.  H  April  11,  1804. 

Jno.  C.  Youngman,  corp.     Trans,  to  Co.  H  April  11,  1804. 

Geo.  W.  Foote,  corp.     Trans,  to  Co.  II  April  11,  1804. 

Levi  H.  Amnion,  corp.  Killed  May  6,  1804,  at  the  Wilder 
ness.  Buried  at  9th  A.  C.  cem.,  Meacfe  station.  Veteran. 

Thos.  S.  Mauck,  corp.  Died  June  20,  1864,  of  wounds  re 
ceived  at  Petersburg.  Buried  in  Nat.  Cem.,  Arlington.  Vet. 

Geo.  M.  Aurand,  corp.  Killed  at  Yellow  Tavern  on  Wei- 
don  railroad,  Aug.  19,  1864.  Vet. 

James  Luker,  corp.     Dis.  Feb.  21,  1863,  for  disability. 

Chas.  D.  Kline,  Jr.,  corp.     Dis.  Jan.  1804,  by  special  order. 

Joseph  A.  Logan,  muse.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Aikey,  Jeremiah,  priv.  Captured.  Died  at  Andersonville. 
Date  unknown. 

Barnes,  Albert,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  180<5. 

Black,  James,  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Burkhart,  Adolph,  priv.  Sub.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 
1865. 

Benner,  Asher,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Baker,  Ralston,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1805. 

Boop,  Jacob,  priv.  Dis.  Dec.  8,  1864,  for  wounds  received 
in  action. 

Blair,  Simon  S.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1805.     Draft. 

Bowers,  George,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Bomgardner,  Jno.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  5,  1865.    Draft. 

Benner,  Lewis  J.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  H,  April  11,  1804. 

Beers,  David  II.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Barklow,  Geo.  E.,  priv.  Died  July  21, 1863,  at  Brownsville, 
Mississippi. 

Benfer,  Abraham,  priv.    Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.    Date  unknown. 

Burk,  Geo.  P.,  priv.     Dis.  May  21,  1862,  for  disability. 

Brouse,  Benj.  H.,  priv.     Killed  April  19,  1802,  at  Camden, 

Bell,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.    Date  unknown. 
Burris,  Samuel,  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  2,  1801,  for  disability. 
Cornelius,  James  P.,  priv.     Mus,  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 
Veteran. 

Cornelius,  Geo.  W.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 
Chambers,  Jas.  M.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 
Curtis,  Jeremiah  F.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27.  1805. 
Curfman,  Daniel,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  15,  1865.  Draft. 


652     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FiRST   REGIMENT 

Cole,  Luther  G.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Draft. 

Chambers,  Morriu  B.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sep.  22,  18G4.     Ex 
piration  of  term. 

Chappel,  Ezra,  priv.     Mus.  or.t  Sept.  22,  1864.     Expirat  on 
of  term. 

Claphan,  Thomas  H.,  priv.     Died  March  13,  1864.     Vet. 

Dolby,  Isaac,  priv.     Captured.     Absent  in  hospital  at  mus. 
out.     Veteran. 

Dolby,  Abraham,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Dersham,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Dielil,  Henry  C.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Dewire,  Alexander,  priv.     Absent  in  prison  since  Feb.  25, 
1865,  by  sentence  of  general  court-martial. 

Dingman,  Abraham,  priv.     Dis.  by   G.  O.  June   1,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Donnison,  Aaron,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.    Draft. 

Dunkle,  James  M.,  priv.     Killed  June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Har 
bor.     Veteran. 

Donachy,  Thos.,  priv.     D!s.  Dec.  1,  1862,  for  disability. 

Derks,  John  D.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Reg.  Army,  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Engle,  Solomon,  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  12,  1862,  for  disability. 

Eidem,  Henry,  priv.     Trans,  to  Reg.  Army,  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Fletcher,  Justice  J.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O,  June  1,  1865.    Draft. 

Frederick,  Jacob,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Fox,  Henry  D.,  priv.     Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.     Date  unknown. 
.   Fetter,  John,  priv.     Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.     Date  unknown. 

Geninger,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Draft. 

Galloway,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.    Sub. 

Gordon,  Jacob,  priv.     Trans,  to  V   R.  C.  Oct.,  1863. 

Heitsman,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Heitsman,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Heimback,  Elias,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hackman,  Wm.  R.    priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hummell,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hilbish,  Ammon,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hanselman,  David,  priv.     Absent  in  arrest  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Hassenplug,  John  T.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Henderson,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Hendricks,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Hendershot,  Christ.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Heiteman,  Isaiah,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  H,  Nov.  16,  1864. 

Hickernell,  Robt.,  priv.     Dred  of  wounds  received  at  Cold 
Harbor,  June  3,  1864. 

Hauley,  Timothy,  priv.    Deserted  April  5, 1865.    Substitute. 

Hansell,  David,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  October  25,  1862. 

Hanselman,  Adam,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Hoffman,  Wm.  R.,  priv.     Killed,  April  19,  1862,  at  Cam- 
den,  N.  C. 

Hoffman,  Ed.  J.,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  Artillery  October 
27,  1862. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      653 

Hutchinson,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  June  17,  1862.     Disability. 

Harris   Berryhill  B.,  priv.     Dis.  June  17,  1862.     Disability. 

Irwin,  Robert  H.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Sept.  22,  1864.  Expr. 
of  term. 

Kline,  Reuben,  priv.     Absent  wounded  at  mus.  out. 

Kline,  Joel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kline,  Daniel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kline,  Charles,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kline,  Andrew  T.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kunkle,  Samuel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kunkle,  Jonathan,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kidson,  Fran.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Klinger,  John,  priv.    Discharged  Aug.  10,  1864.    Disability. 

Kennedy,  Barton,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  7,  1865. 

Kelly,  James  T.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  H.  Nov.,  1864. 

Kline,  Jacob  L.,  priv.  Died  May  6,  1864;  buried  in  U.  S. 
General  Hospital  Cemeteiy,  Annapolis,  Md. 

Lloyd,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lottx,  Galen,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Long,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Laudenslager,  Win.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Lenhart,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  1,  1865. 

Lloyd,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  Sept.  22,  1864.    Expr.  of  term. 

Lydle,  Chas.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Sept.  22,  1864.    Expr.  of  term. 

Leinbach,  Win.  F.  N.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O   June  1,  1865. 

Laird,  Saml.  H.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  5,  1865. 

Lenhard,  David,  priv.  Killed  June  17,  1864,  at  Peters 
burg,  Va. 

Miller,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Miller,  Henry.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Miller,  James,  priv.     Absent  in  hospital  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Myers,  Daniel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Masterson,  Ed.  J.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Mertz,  Jacoo  K.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July,  27,  1865. 

Middaugh,  John  T.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Millhouse,  John,  priv.  Wounded  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilder 
ness.  Discharged  May,  16,  1865,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Moll,  Joseph  H.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  H,  April  18,  1864. 

Meckley,  Alfred,  priv.  Killed  in  battle  at  Yellow  Tavern, 
Aug.  19,  1864. 

Mullin,  Arthur,  priv.     Deserted  June  18,  1865.     Substitute. 

Marsh,  Charles  H.,  priv.     Deserted  April  10,  1864. 

McGregor,  Samuel,  priv.     Deserted  April  26,  1865.     Vet. 

McFadden,  Jackson,  priv.  Discharged  for  wounds  received 
Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Autietam. 

Norton,  Henry  M.     Sub.     Mus   out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Or  wig,  Wm.  P.,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  Army  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Orwig,  John  W.,  priv.    Trans,  to  U.  S.  Army  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Paul,  Peter  G.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Post,  Victor  E.,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Rule,  John  V.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 


654     IIISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY- FIKST   REGIMENT 

Rnhback,  John,  priv.     Absent,  wounded,  at  mus.  out. 

Rote,  Joel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Rote,  Saml.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  0.  May  23,  1865. 

Reed,  Martin  G.,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Reese,  Jonathan,  priv.'  Mus.  out  Sept.  22,  1864.  Expr.  of 
term. 

Raden,  Jeremiah,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Renner,  Levi,  priv.     Dis.  Jan.  10,  1862,  for  disability. 

Searless,  Sebastian,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Schnure,  George,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Schnure,  Win.,  priv.   Wounded  in  action.   Dis.  July  17,  1865. 

Shriner,  Josiah,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Schaffle,  Frank  S.,  priv.     Dis,  by  G.  O.  May  31,  1865.    Vet. 

Smith,  Albert  E.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Draf. 

Sheckler,  John  W.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  29,  1865.  Vet. 

Seebold,  Geo.  A.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Sept.  22,  1864.  Expr.  of 
term. 

Sholley,  Wm.  S.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  H,  April  18, 1864. 

Seebold,  Castor,  priv.     Died  May  11, 1864,  at  Philadelphia. 

Simmons,  Thos.,  priv.     Sub.     Deserted  May  17,  1864. 

Shaffer,  Anthony,  priv.     Deserted  March  7,  1864. 

ShrefHer,  Joseph,  priv.    Trans,  to  U.  S.  Army  Oct.  27, 1862. 

Sassman,  Emanuel,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Sassman,  Noah  W.,  priv.    Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  Oct.  27,  1863. 

Speese,  Daniel,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  Army  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Sheary,  Saml.  F.,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability,  date  unknown. 

Sheckler.  John  W.,  priv.     Captured.     Dis.,  date  unknown. 

Snyder,  Henry,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  Army  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Snyder,  Jonathan,  priv.  Trans,  to  U.  S.  Army  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Stizer,  John  T.,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  Army  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Toland,  Robt.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Tucker,  Samuel,  priv.     Deserted  March  10,  1864. 

Trainer,  Chas.  H.,  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  21,  1861,  for  disability. 

Wilson,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

W  caver,  John  D.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Watson,  Win.  S.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Wolfiuger,  Joseph,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Wirt,  Andrew  G.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Webb,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Drafted. 

Wirt,  Geo.  W.,  priv.    Died  Sept.  15,  1863,  at  Lexington,  Ky. 

Woodward,  C.  W..  priv.    Dis.,  date  unknown,  for  disability. 

Zechman,  Melancthon,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Zimmerman,  Wm.,  priv.    Trans,  to  Reg.  Army  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Total  names  on  the  rolls,  182.* 

•  =*  It  will  be  impossible  to  give  the  faintest  idea  of  the  casualties  in 
Co.  E,  as  it,  in  company  with  the  five  which  constituted  the 
"  left  wing,"  appear  to  have  ignored  the  propriety  of  entering  them 
as  they  happened  on  their  regular  muster  and  pay  rolls.  Those  in 
the  regiment  know  full  well  that  Co.  E,  under  such  a  cool, 
brave,  and  noted  officer  as  Captain  Win.  K.  Foster,  must  have  expe- 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  655 

ROLL   OF   CO.    F. 

Recruited  at  Norristown. 

Robert  E.  Taylor,  captain,     Resigned  July  27,  1863. 

Lane  8.  Hart.  capt.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antictam, 
again  Aug.  19,  1864,  at  the  Yellow  Tavern,  Va.  Pro.  from  1st 
lieut.  to  captain  July  28,  1862;  to  major  July  21,  1864. 

Jacob  P.  Brooke,  capt.  Wounded  Aug.  19,  1864,  at  the 
Yellow  Tavern,  Va.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  1st  lieut.  July  29, 
1862;  to  capt.  July  22,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Wm.  W.  Owen,  1st  lieut,  Pro.  from  sergt,  to  2d  lieut.  July 
23,  1862;  to  1st  lieut.  July  22,  1864;  to  capt.  Co.  D,  Sept.  1,  1864. 
Seriously  wounded  May  6,  186 1,  at  the  Wilderness. 

Howard  Bruce.  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut. 
Sept.  2,  1864;  to  1st  lieut,  Oct.  81,  1864.  WTounded  Sept.  17, 
1862,  again  May  6,  1864,  at  the  Wilderness.  Mus.  out  with  co. 
July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Joseph  C.  Reed,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  capt,  and  com.  sub.  July  22, 
1862. 

Henry  Jacobs,  2d  lieut.    Wounded  July  16, 1863,  at  Jackson, 

rienced  considerable  loss,  for  he  always  led  them  into  the  thickest  of 
the  fight,  where  the  heaviest  blows  were  most  needed,  and  certain  it 
is,  that  his  men  did  not  escape  the  dangers  incident  to  the  conilict, 
but  shed  their  brave  blood  equally  as  free  as  those  of  other  com 
panies.  The  writer  can  give  a  voucher  for  this  from  his  own  obser 
vations.  At  the  time  Colonel  Hartranft  double-quicked  the  division 
into  the  cornfield  at  the  junction  of  the  Kingston  and  Knoxville 
roads  at  Campbell's  Station,  East  Tennessee,  on  Nov.  16,  1803, 
seven  men  of  Co.  E  were  wounded,  and  not  one  of  the  cases  ap 
pears  on  the  c  >mpany  rolls,  therefore  it  is  to  be  inferred  that  they 
cared  very  little  about  noting  down  such  glory,  it  being  sufficient  to 
know  that  they  had  got  a  "  smack." 

The  following  tabular  statement  will  have  to  suffice : 

Killed  in  battle — Non-commissioned  officers,  3  ;  privates,  5.  Died 
of  wounds — Nou-com.  officers,  2  ;  privates,  2.  Died  of  disease — 
Privates,  4.  Died  in  rebel  prisons — Privates,  1.  Wounded — Coin, 
officers,  1;  non-com,  officers,  3;  privates,  7.  Captured — Privates, 
3.  Transferred — Com.  officers,  2;  non-com,  officers,  3;  privates, 
26.  Discharged — Com.  officers,  2 ;  non-com,  officers,  5;  privates, 
50.  Deserted— Privates,  7. 

Recapitulation. — Total  killed  and  died,  14 ;  wounded,  11 ;  trans 
ferred,  31 ;  discharged,  57  ;  deserted,  7.  Grand  total  loss,  1£3. 

This  table  shows  one  thing  that  is  plain  to  every  soldier  and  those 
conversant  with  military  matters,  and  that  is  the  great  disparity  be 
tween  the  killed  and  the  wounded,  being  but  eleven  wounded  to 
seven  killed.  Even  allowing  but  seven  killed,  and  taking  the  lowest 
percentage  for  wounded,  it  would  put  the  wounded  at  thirty-five,  and 
at  the  highest  percentage  at  forty-nine  ;  but  as  Co.  E  has  done 
some  pretty  hard  fighting,  it  would  be  but  fair  to  strike  the  medium, 
find  to  put  down  forty-two  for  its  wounded.  Its  killed  and  wounded 
would  no  doubt  equal  any  other  company,  if  it  could  be  ascertained. 


656     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Miss.     Pro.  from  sergt.  to  3d  lieut.  Nov.  1.  1864.     Mus.  out 
with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Veteran. 

Allen  H.  Fillman,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  corn,  sergt.  to  2d 
lieut.  July  22,  1864.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Killed  July  30,  1864,  at  the  explosion  of  the  Burnside  mine,  in 
front  of  Petersburg,  Va.  Veteran. 

Benjamin  White,  1st  sergt.  Wounded  July  16,  1863,  at 
Jackson,  Miss.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  1st  sergt.  April  1,  1865. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865,  Veteran. 

AVilliam  B.  Hart,  1st  sergt.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at 
Fredericksburg,  Va.  Prom,  to  captain  and  A.  A.  Gen.,  U.  S. 
Volunteers,  April  1,  1865.  Veteran. 

Jacob  W.  Reed,  sergt.  Wounded  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Jas.  Y.  Guyder,  sergt.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Win.  H.  Fie,  sergt.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Geo.  W.  Hiltner,  sergt.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Vet. 

Thos.  B.  Garner,  sergt.     Dis.  Oct.  29, 1862,  for  disability. 

Saml.  P.  Stephens,  sergt.  Promoted  to  com.  sergt.  Nov.  16, 
1861.  Veteran. 

Silas  Kulp,  corp.    Mustered  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Geo.  S.  Casselberry,  corp.  Discharged  Feb.  26th,  1862  ;  re- 
enlisted  as  a  veteran,  Mar.  8,  1864.  Severely  wounded,  with 
loss  of  leg,  Oct.  28th,  1864.  Discharged  Feb.  26,  1865,  on  ac 
count  of  wounds. 

Wm.  H.  Yerger,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co  July  57, 1865.    Vet. 

William  H.  Yerkcs,  corp.  Dis.  Dec.  16,  1862,  to  receive 
promotion  to  major  179th  Penn.  Volunteers. 

Arnold  Casselberry,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  186?. 
Veteran. 

John  J.  Scholl,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  186">.    Vet. 

Jos.  Fizone,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Martin  Hiltner,  corp.  Mustered  out  with  co.  July  27,  .1865. 
Veteran.  Promoted  corp.  April  2,  1865. 

John  W.  Truscott,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Thos.  B.  Yerger,  corp.  Discharged  Feb.  28,  1865,  for  disa 
bility.  Veteran. 

Robt.  B.  Lindsey,  corp.  Killed  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsyl- 
vania  C.  H.,  Va.  Veteran. 

Ed.  R.  Worth,  corp.  Killed  June  18,  1864,  at  Petersburg, 
Va.  Veteran. 

Josiah  Wood,  corp.  Killed  July  30, 1864,  at  Petersburg,  Va. 
Veteran. 

Win.  Montgomery,  corp.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  An 
tietam  ;  discharged  Dec.  11,  1862,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Chris.  Wyckoff,  corp.     Prom,  to  Q.  M.  sergt.  Dec.  12,  1862. 

Henry  C.  Hughes,  corp.  Discharged  May  21,  1862,  at  New- 
bern,  N.  C. 

Wm.  L.  Jones,  corp.     Died  Dec.  12,  1°62,  at  Falmouth,  Va, 

Wm.  C.  Ilansell,  musician.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 
1865.  Veteran. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEEKS.  657 

Lyle,  Franklin,  music.    Absent  in  arrest  at  muster -out  of  co. 
Adams,  Daniel,  private.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Akleman,  Francis,  priv.     Discharged  June  13,  1865,  on  ac 
count  of  wounds  received  in  action. 

Allen,  Wilson,  priv.     Died  June  9,  1864,  from  wounds  re 
ceived  in  action  at  Po  river,  Virginia.     Veteran. 

Adleman,  Henry  K.,  priv.    Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred- 
cricksburg  ;  killed  June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Harbor.     Veteran. 

Ashton,  Thos.  G.,  priv.    Wounded  May  6,  1864,  at  the  Wil 
derness  ;  died  June  9,  1864,  from  wounds. 

Addy,  George  W.,  priv.    Discharged  for  disability,  May  21, 
1862,  at  Newbern. 

Arnold,  Samuel  G.,  priv.    Trans,  to  rcg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 
Batman,  John,  priv.    Absent  sick  at  muster-out  of  co. 
Batman,  Jos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Bidlack,  James,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  18, 1835. 
Biddler,  Amile,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Buyer,  Manassa  J.,    priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Bowman,  George,  priv.     Absent  in  hospital  at  muster-out. 
Blackmore,  Darran,  priv.    Drafted.     Dis.  Dec.  22,  1864,  for 
disability. 

Bousman,  Henry,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  April  13,  1865,  for 
disability. 

Burrows.  Edwin  A.,  priv.  Drafted.  Transferred  to  201st  regt. 
P.  V.,  Nov.  1864. 

Bowie,  Frank.     Substitute.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  May  27,  1865. 
Baker,  James  F.,  priv.    Deserted,  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilderness. 
Buck,  Jeremiah  W.,  priv.    Trans,  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 
Buckies,  Jessie M.,  priv.    Trans   to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 
Baird,  James  S.,  priv.    Transf.  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 
Burgert,  Adam,  priv.     Dis.  (date  unknown)  for  disability. 
Boadwell,  John,  priv.    Dis.  May  21,  1862,  for  disability. 
Callender,  Judson,  priv.     Absent  in  hospital  at  muster  out. 
Veteran. 

Case,  John  P.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Cox,  Richard  A.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  cu.  July  27,  1865. 
Coyle,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Charles,  Elwood,  priv.     Wounded  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilder 
ness  ;  died  May  24,  1864,  from  wounds,  at  Washington.     Vet. 
Camden,  John,  priv.     Wounded,  with  loss  of  leg,  Oct.  27, 
1864,  at  Hatcher's  Run,  Va.    Died  Nov.  23,  1864,  from  wounds, 
at  Washington. 

Cremmer,  James,  priv.     Deserted,  1865. 
Casselman,  Nathaniel,  priv.     Captured  April   19,    1862,  at 
Camden,  N.  C.     Supposed  to  be  dead. 

Cox,  John,  priv.     Dis.  May  21,  1862,  at  Newborn,  N.  C. 
Comer,  Wm.,  priv.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Derrickson,  Wm.,  priv.    Deserted — returned.    Mustered  out 
with  company. 

Dexter,  Harvey  H.,  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 
1865. 

29 


658     HISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

Daub,  Geo.  W.,  priv.  Absent  in  Albany  prison,  N.  Y.,  by 
sentence  of  general  court  martial. 

Dunlap,  Jeremiah,  priv.  Died  June  11, 1865  ;  buried  at  Alex 
andria  Cemetery,  Va.,  grave  3,218. 

Dreslier,  Samuel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Detwiler,  Isaac,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  15, 1864,  expir.  of  term. 

^Dolan,  James,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam  ; 
discharged  April  1,  1863,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Derough,  Jesse,  priv.     Dis.  Jan.  1,  1862,  for  disability. 

Deincr,  Thos.,  priv.  Dis.  Nov.  19,  1862,  on  acc't  of  wounds 
received  July  30,  1862,  at  Bull  Run,  Va. 

Daub,  Sam.  G.,  priv.  Transf.  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  Nov.  6. 
1863. 

Dumming,  John  II.,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.  Draft. 

Daub,  Sylvanus  H.,  priv.  Wounded  June  3,  1864,  at  Cold 
Harbor;  died  June  27,  1864,  from  wounds. 

Dresher,  Wm.,  priv.  Wounded  May  12.  1864,  at  Spottsyl- 
vania  C.  H.,  Va.  ;  died  July  8,  1864,  from  wounds. 

Doyle,  William,  priv.     Deserted. 

Day,  Charles,  priv.     Transf.  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Dunn,  Martin  II.,  priv.  Promoted  to  hospital  steward,  No 
vember  16,  1861.  Veteran. 

Evans,  Robt.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Earls,  Alexander,  priv.    Transf.  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Earp,  John  W.,  priv.    Transf.  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Evans,  Ferd.,  priv.    Transf.  to  Invalid  Corps,  Nov.  6,  1863. 

Franklin,  Win.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Freas,  Daniel,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam  ; 
discharged  June  28,  1863,  at  Milldale,  Mississippi. 

Faulkner.  Win.  J.,  priv.  Drafted.  Discharged  by  G.  O. 
June  2,  1865. 

Fisher,  Jacob,  priv.     Dis.  Oct.  1,  1862. 

Griffith,  William  II.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Gerhart,  Henry  L.,  priv.  Transf.  to  Invalid  Corps,  Nov.  16, 
1863.  Mus.  out  Oct.  15,  1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Groff,  Henry  M.,  priv.    Dis.  Mar.  8,  1862,  at  Newport  News. 

Gerhart,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  27,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Gillespie,  Sam.,  priv.  Killed  at  Petersburg,  June  29,  1864. 
Buried  in  9th  A.  C.  cemetery,  at  Meade  Station. 

Griffith,  Wash.  I     priv.     Died  April  1,  1864,  at  Annapolis. 

Gibbons,  Jas.,  priv.     Deserted  June  23,  1865. 

llendricks,  Sam.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Heller,  Milton,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Heissy,  David,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Heddifin,  Robt.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Home,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Home,  Ephraim,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Holler,  John  B.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Haas,  Dav.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  12,  1865. 

Hay  den,  Geo.  M.,  priv.  Discharged  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Holmes,  Geo.  M.,  priv.     Discharged,  date  unknown. 

Higgens,  Pat.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      659 

Hoclson,  Ed.  M.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.    Drafted. 

Hilton,  Geo.,  priv.     Deserted. 

Holmes,  Jno.  M.,  priv.  Died  June  21,  1862,  one  report  says, 
another,  Nov.  21,  1801 — at  Norristown. 

Hansell,  Geo.  Y.,  priv.    Transf.  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Johns,  Edwin  M. ,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Jaggers,  Jas.,  priv.     Dis.  May  28,  1862,  at  Newbern. 

Jackson,  Wm.,  priv.     Deserted,  Dec.  27,  1862. 

Jacobs,  Philip,  priv.     Transf.  to  reg.  band  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Keins,  And.  J.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Koser,  Aaron,  priv.     Absent,  in  arrest,  at  muster  out  of  co. 

Kremer,  Button  P.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kurtz,  Wm.  M.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kulp,  Willoughby  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Kremer,  Frederick,  priv.   Mus.  out  Oct.  15, 1864,  ex*,  of  term. 

Krepner,  Amos,  priv.  Prom,  to  2d  lieut.  U.  S.  colored 
troops,  Nov.  2,  1864. 

Kartsher,  Richard  S.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  5,  1865. 

Kulp,  Benneville,  priv.  Transf.  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  Oct.  6, 
1864. 

Kulp,  Nathan,  priv.  Transf.  to  Vet,  Res.  Corps,  Nov'r  6, 
1864.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericksburg. 

Kreamer,  Geo.,  priv.     Deserted  Oct.  21,  1861. 

Lentz,  Henry  D.,  priv.    Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Law,  Chas.,  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lewis,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lewis,  Oliver,  piiv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lewis,  Hiram,  priv.     Mus.  out  withco.  July  27,  1865. 

Lewis,  Wm.  II.,  priv.  Trans.  Feb.  2, 1865,  to  Vet  Res.  Corps. 

Lemkuhl,  Frcdk.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lemkuhl,  Jer.,  priv.     Mus.  out.  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Leister,  Benj.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Loch,  Christian,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  15,  1865. 

Maudley,  Bruno,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Munsick,  David,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
ericksburg  ;  dis.  Feb.  4,  1863,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Mogee,  Robt,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam  ; 
transf.  to  Invalid  Corps  Nov.  6,  1863. 

McCormick,  Ch'n,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
ericksburg.  Mus.  out  Nov.  27,  1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Markley,  Sam.,  priv.     Dis.  Mar.  6,  1863,  for  disability. 

McSparren,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  Mar.  14,  1863.  for  disability. 

McFadden,  Francis,  priv.   Trans.  Nov.  6, 1863,  tolnv.  Corps. 

McGuncken,  Hugh,  priv.     Deserted  Nov.  9,  1861. 

Mclntyre,  Wm.,  priv.  Captured  Dec.  15,  1863,  at  Clinch  Mtn. 
Gap,  E.  Tenn.  ;  died  at  Anderson ville,  Ga.,  Apr.  16,  1864 — 
grave  461. 

Miller,  Peter  I.,  priv.     Mns.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Minard,  Enos  G.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Menell,  Dwight  W.,  priv.     Dis.  Dec,  22,  1864,  for  disability. 

Millhouse,  Jos.  C.,  priv.    Transf.  to  reg.  band  Nov.  16,  1861. 


660     HISTORY    OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   EEGIMENT 

McClennan,  Sam.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McOarter,  Sam.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McMiller,  Geo.  K.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McKevin,  Reuben,  priv.  Died  Mar.  17,  1864,  at  Norristown. 
Veteran. 

McGlinchy,  Jas.,  priv.     Deserted. 

Neece,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Absent  in  arrest  at  muster-out. 

Pilkington,  Abr.,  priv.    Absent  in  arrest  at  muster-out. 

Pyle,  Win.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Quin,  Patrick,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Heed,  Ed.  AY.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Heed,  Geo.  M.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Rider,  Win.  O.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Rdgle,  Fred.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Rambo,  Jos.  C.,  priv.  Absent  in  arrest  for  desertion  at  mus 
ter  out. 

Reininger,  Manassas,  priv.  Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred- 
ericksburg. 

Robb,  Erastus,  priv.     Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Ramsey,  Win.  II.  B.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Oct.  15,  1864,  expira 
tion  of  term. 

Reinhart,  Henry,  priv.     Deserted  May  5,  1865. 

Rowland,  Beuj.,  priv.     Transf.  to  reg-  band  Nov.  16,  1861. 


Sayres,  Jno.  F.,  priv.    Drafted.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Schreck,  Franklin,  priv.  Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2, 1865. 

Seylor,  Jos.,  priv.    Sub.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  5,  1865. 

Shiitler,  Jacob  K.,  priv.    Drafted'.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2, 1865. 

Shuler,  Geo.,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Syock,  Henry,  V.,  priv.    Drafted.  Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  2, 1865. 

Shadier,  Henry,  priv.  Died  May  4, 1865.  Buried  in  Nat.  Cem 
etery,  Arlington. 

Shultz,  Henry,  priv.    Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antielam. 

Sassaman,  Jacob,  priv.  Transf.  to  2d  U.  S.  Cav.,  Oct.  27 
1862. 

Teany,  Albert,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred- 
ericksburg.  Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  3,  1865. 

Taylor,  Saml.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Tarrance,  Samuel  D.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Oct.  15,  1864.  Expr. 
of  term. 

Time,  John,  priv.     Sub.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  5,  1865. 

Thompsons,  Chas.,  priv.  Trans,  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Urbiue,  Peter,  priv.     Died  Sept,  9,  1863,  at  Coving-ton,  Ky. 

White,  Henry,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg.  Died  July  5,  1864,  at  Washington,  D.  C.,  of  wounds 
received  at  the  Wilderness,  May  6,  1864. 

Wise,  Wm.,  priv.     Died  Nov.  9,  1862,  at  Weaverton,  Md. 

Widger,  Mark,  priv.  Dis.  September  28,  1862,  for  distibilitv. 

White,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  28.  1862,  at  Newport  News. 

Waddle,  Jas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      661 

Wheatley,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Wetnzel,  Adam,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Wilson,  Howard,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Weeks,  Wm.  S.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Wisler,  Jonathan,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 
Veteran. 

Williams,  Geo.  D.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 
Veteran. 

Wyatt,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Weidner,  Sainl.  D.,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  25.  1805.  Vet. 

Woodward,  Alex.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1805.     Sub. 

Wagoner,  Chas.,  priv.  Killed  March  25, 1804,  at  Fort  Mor 
ton,  in  front  of  Petersburg,  at  the  attack  on  Fort  Steadman  ; 
buried  at  Meade  Station. 

Workizer,  Win.,  priv.     Trans,  to  reg.  band,  Nov.  10,  1801. 

Young,  Jos.  0..  priv.   Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805.   Vet. 

Young,  John  M.,  priv.  Drowned  by  the  sinking  of  the 
transport  "West  Point,"  Oct.  20,  1802,  at  Aquia  Creek. 

Total  names  on  the  rolls,  210.* 

*  Summary  of  Casualties:. — Killed — Com.  officers,  1;  non-com, 
officers,  3  ;  privates,  7.  Died  from  wounds — Privates,  8.  Died  in 
rebel  prison — Privates,  1.  Died  by  drowning — Privates,!.  Died  by 
accident — Non. -com.  officers,  1.  Wounded— Ctra.  officers,?;  non.- 
com.  officers,  5  ;  privates,  17.  Captured — privates,  2.  Transferred 
— Com.  officers,  2  ;  non.-com.  officers,  2  ;  privates,  25.  Discharged 
— Com.  officers,  none  ;  non.-com.  officers,  6  ;  privates,  46.  Deserted 
— Privates,  11.  Resigned — Com.  officers,  1.  In  arrest  at  muster-out, 
— Enlisted  men,  0.  Died  from  disease — Privates,  6. 

Recapitulation. — Killed,  11;  died  from  wounds,  8;  died  from 
disease,  G;  died  from  various  causes,  3  ;  wounded,  29;  captured, 
2;  transferred,  39.  Total  discharges,  53;  total  deserted,  11 ;  total 
resigned,  1 :  total  in  arrest,  6.  Grand  total  of  casualties,  158. 

Co.  F.'s  list  of  casualties  are  nearer  correct  than  some  of  the  other 
companies,  still,  in  wounded  it  is  far  short  of  the  actual  number ;  for 
there  was  the  same  apathy  evinced  in  entering  the  casualties  on  the 
rolls  as  in  other  companies,  and  none  ever  find  their  names  on  the 
rolls  unless  they  are  absent  as  wounded  in  the  hospitals  on  the  reg 
ular  muster  day.  Hundreds  of  wounded  would  sooner  lie  in  camp 
and  suffer  than  to  enter  a  field  hospital,  while  a  few  would  "jump" 
at  the  chance  of  gointr  to  one  with  what  has  been  properly  termed 
a  "furlough  wound."  Yet,  as  long  as  a  man  ean  crawl  off  the  bat 
tle  field,  he  thinks  there  is  no  use  going  to  the  hospital  ;  or,  if  he 
goes,  as  soon  as  the  wound  is  dressed  he  is  apt  to  be  found  back  in 
camp,  and  his  case  is  not  entered  on  the  company's  muster  and  pay 
rolls. 

Co.  F  can  feel  a  soldierly  pride  when  it  scans  over  its  military 
horizon  and  bring  to  mind  its  first  individual  skirmish  at  Camden — 
when  it  and  Co.  A  received  the  first  shock  of  battle  while  on  the  ad 
vance  of  the  column,  with  the  solid  shot  of  the  3d  Georgia  ricochit- 
ing  along  the  road,  then  either  through  its  ranks  or  over  their 
heads.  Again,  at  Bull  Run,  etc.,  when  its  ranks  were  kept  well 
closed  up  through  the  various  ordeals,  and  trying  ones  too,  while 
the  enemy  endeavored  to  flank  the  battery  in  the  rear  of  Co.  A. 


662      HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

ROLL  OF   CO.    G. 

Recruited  in  Centre  County,  Pennsylvania. 

Austin  B.  Snyder,  capt.     Resigned  Feb.  12,  1862. 
Wm.  H.  Blair,  capt.     Prom,  from  1st  Kent,  to  capt.  Feb.  12, 
1862  ;  to  col.  179th  P.  Y.  Dec.  19,  1862. 

Peter  A.  Gaulin,  capt.     Prom,  from  2cl  lieut.  to  1st,  Feb.  12, 

1862  ;  to  capt.  Jan.  11,  1863.     Resigned  Mar.  16,  1864. 
John  R.    Gillilland,  capt.     Prom,  from  sergt.   to  2d   lieut. 

Mar.  1,  1862  ;  to  1st  lieut.  Jan.  11,  1863  ;  to  capt.  June  5,  1864. 
Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Thos.  D.  Reed,  capt.  Prom,  from  1st  sergt.  Co.  E  to  1st 
lieut.  Nov.  23,  1864;  to  capt.  Feb.  11,  1865."  Mus.  out  with 
co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Geo.  B.  Campbell,   1st  lieut.     Prom,   to  2d  lieut.  Jan.  11, 

1863  ;  to  1st  lieut.  June  5,  1864.     Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1864,  expi 
ration  of  term. 

John  Gunsalles,  1st  lieut.  Prom,  from  1st  serg.  to  2cl  lieut. 
Jan.  14,  1865  ;  to  1st  lieut.  Feb.  13,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co. 
July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Curtin  B.  Stoneroad,  2d  lieut.  Prom,  from  sergt. -major  to 
3d  lieut.  June  25,  1864 ;  to  captain,  Oct.  20,  1864.  Not  mus 
tered.  Dis.  Dec.  31,  1864,  for  wounds  received  in  action  Au 
gust  19,  1864. 

George  Decker,  2d  lieut.  Prom,  to  2d  lieut.  Feb.  13,  1865. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Wm.  Hichel,  1st  sergt.  Prom,  from  sergt.  to  1st  sergt.  Feb. 
13,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Edward  Shannon,  sergt.     Mus.  out  with  co.     Veteran. 

Geo.  Dumont.  sergt.  Prom,  from  corp.  to  sergt.  Feb.  13, 
1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran." 

David  Youts,  sergt.  Prom,  from  corp.  to  sergt.  Apr.  6,  1865. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

D.  C.  Ammerman,  sergt.  Pro.  from  corp.  to  sergt.,  March 
9,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Jos.  A.  Clark,  sergt.    Mus.  out  Oct.  16, 1864.    Expr.  of  term. 

Louis  Cartuyvel,  sergt.  Pro.  to  q.  m.  sergt.  Mar.  9,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Jos.  J.  Peters,  sergt.  Died  at  Bellefonte,  Pa.,  April  5,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Adam  Grassmire,  sergt.     Discharged  for  disability. 

Jos.  Ammerman,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

John  F.  Bowes,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Serdon  Rolley,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Richard  Lewis,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Martin  Falstic,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Jacob  Casher,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Chas.  Heitchel,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Robt.  Hinton,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Wm.  Maurer,  corp.    Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1864.    Expr.  of  term. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      663 

John  E.  Wilt,  corp.    Killed  May  6.  1804,  at  Wilderness.   Vet. 

James  Dowling,  corp.     Killed  Sept.  17,  18-32,  at  Antietam. 

Geo.  Armstrong,  corp.   Wounded  Sept.  17, 1862,  at  Antietam. 
Discharged  on  account  of  wounds. 

Hezekiah  Dixon,  corp.     Discharged  for  disability. 

James  Holmes,  corp.     Discharged  for  disability. 

Scth  Brewer,  musician.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Jas.  Elder,  musician.    Mus.  out  Oct.  16, 1804:    Expr.  of  term. 

Ammermau,   Thos.,   priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1864.     Expr. 
of  term. 

Arbuckle,    Thos.,  priv.     Captured.     Died  Jan.  1,  1865,  at 
Salisbury,  N.  C. 

Allen,  Wm.,  priv.     Deserted  Sept.  17,  1802,  at  Antietam. 

Ammerinan,  J.  E.,  priv.     Died  at  Covington,  Ky.}  date  un 
known. 

Allard,  John,  priv.    Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date  unknown. 

Bowes,  Levi,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Berall,  Lewis,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Drftd. 

Brady,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Bruxton,  Jarvis,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Beighton,  Jacob  S.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1864.     Expr.  of 
term. 

Belcher,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.    Drftd. 

Bruce,  James,  priv.    Discharged  Nov.  28, 1864,  for  disability. 

Brown,  Fred'k,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Drftd." 

Bowles,  John,  priv.     Trans.  Oct.  16,  1864,  to  Co.  B. 

Buoy,  Wm.,  priv.     Died  July  20,  1864;  bur.  in  Nat.  Gem., 
Arlington. 

Bratton,  Philip  PI.,  priv.     Trans.  Oct.  16,  1864,  to  Co.  K. 

Blyler,  John,  priv.     Killed  Feb.  24,  1864,  at  Petersburg. 

Bcightol,  James,  priv.     Died  June,  1863,  at  Beaufort,  S.  C. 

Baird,  Theophilus,  priv.     Wounded  April  19,  1862,  at  Cam- 
den,  N.  C.     Discharged  on  account  of  wounds. 

Bowers,  Rollanel,  priv.    Discharged  Sept.,  1862,  for  disability. 

Cayot,  Lewis  P.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.-out.     Veteran. 

Crossly,  Wm.  M.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.-out. 

Cox,  George,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1864.     Expr.  of  term. 

Commer,  Israel  H.,  priv.    Drafted.    Discharged  Feb.  3, 1865. 

Carson,  Fred'k,  priv.     Drafted.     Discharged  by  G.  O.  June 
1,  1865. 

Confer,  John,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Clifton,  Allen  J.,  priv.     Trans.  Nov.  16,  1864,  to  Co.  B. 

Cramer,  H.,  priv.     Died  March  16,  1864,  in  Centre  co.,  Pa. 

Carey,  John,  priv.     Sub.     Deserted  April  5,  1865. 

Capwell,  John,  priv.     Deserted  June  25,  1865. 

Callahan,   Chas.,   priv.     Trans.   Oct.  27,  1862,  to  2d  U.  S. 
Cavalry. 

Conway,  Cornels,  priv.     Discharged  for  disability. 

Deny,  Wm.,  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Dixon,  John,  priv.    Drafted.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Davis,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Derstine,  John  F.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1864.     Expr.  of 
term. 


664     HISTORY   OF    THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Diehl,  John  H.,  priv.     Trans.  Nov.  1C,  1864,  to  Co.  B. 

Dtitott,  George,  priv.  Trans,  to  45th  Regt.  P.  V.,  date  un 
known. 

Duncan,  Enos,  priv.      Trans.  Oct.  16,  1864,  to  Co.  B. 

Darrun,  Thos.,  priv.     Sub.     Deserted  June  28,  1865. 

Dore,  Lewis,  priv.     Sub.     Deserted  July  10,  1865. 

Dillon,  Miles,  priv.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1802,  at  Antietam. 

Deckman,  Daniel,  priv.     Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps. 

Downing  Ed.,  priv.     Discharged  for  disability. 

Dolan,  James,  priv.  Wounded  Feb.  8,  18(52,  at  Roanoke 
Island,  N.  C.  Discharged  on  account  of  his  wounds. 

Ells,  Edw.,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  1,  1865. 

Eckley,  Nicholas,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1, 1865. 

Emel,  Henry,  priv.     Died  April  24,  1864,  at  Annapolis. 

Etters,  Benj.,  priv.     Died  May  24,  1864,  at  Alexandria,  Va. 

Fie,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Frieze,  Daniel,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  16, 1864.    Expr.  of  term. 

Fetzer,  Andrew,  priv.    Drftd.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Fair,  Edward,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Force,  David,  priv.     Discharged  for  disability,  1862. 

Frazier,  Archy,  priv.     Died,  1862,  at  Beaufort,  S.  C. 

Fisher,  John  J.,  priv.     Trans,  to  2d  U.  S.  Cav.  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Garis,  Leonard,  priv.     Drafted.     Discharged  July  20,  1865. 

Glosner,  Henry,  priv.     Drftd.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Gossner,  J.  W.,  priv.     Trans.  45th  Regt.  P.  V. 

Giles,  Larry,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Gummo,  James,  priv.  Drowned  at  the  sinking  of  the  "  West 
Point,"  1862. 

Ilollaback,  Mordecai,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hess,  Andrew,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Hohn,  Ferdinand,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Sub. 

Henderson,  John,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Sub. 

Heagey,  Charles,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Trans.  June  2,  1865,  from  200th  P.  V. 

Hess,  Wm.  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hall,  James,  priv.     Discharged  June  1,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Iloumell,  Henry,  priv.  Discharged  Nov.  2,  1864,  for  dis 
ability.  Drafted. 

Hollabaugh,  R.  C.,  priv.     Discharged  June  1,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Huey,  Jas.,  priv.    Discharged  June  1, 1865,  by  G.  O.    Drftd. 

Harrison,  Samuel,  priv.     Dis.  June  1,  1865,  by  G.  O.    Drttd. 

Heine],  John,  priv.    Discharged  Junel,  1865,  by  G.  O.    Vet. 

Hollabaugh,  Jno.,  priv.  Discharged  Nov.  28,  .1864,  for  dis 
ability.  Drafted. 

Halsted,  J.  A.,  priv.  Drafted.  Deserted.  Returned.  Pris 
oner  from  May  21,  1864,  to  April  21,  1865.  Mus.  out  April  11, 
1865.  Expr.  of  term. 

Hiiiton,  Robt.,  priv.    Wounded  at  Knoxville,  Nov.  27,  1863. 

Henning,  Michael,  priv.   Trans,  to  45th  P.  V.,  date  unknown. 

Harrington,  Win.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Held,  Emil,  priv.     Killed  June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Harbor,  Va. 

Hall,  Wm.  P.,  priv.     Died  at  Annapolis,  1862. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.       665 

Hall,  Andrew,  priv.     Trans,  from  Vet.  Res.  Corps.     Mus. 
out  expr.  of  term. 

Heichel,    Houston,  priv.     Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.   Corps,   date 
unknown. 

Hoovan,  Jo!  n  II.,  priv.     Deserted,  1863. 

Irwin,  Thos.,  priv.    Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date  unknown. 

Jauss,  Conrad,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Sub. 

Jossett,  Germain  H.  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Johnson,  Geo.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Jones,  II.  D.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Johnson,  Barn  hart,  priv.     Discharged,  date  unknown. 

King,  Abraham  B.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

King,  Charles  K.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kengle,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Kersimer,  Wm.  B.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  cb.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Kase,  Caleb,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out. 

Kepler,  Wm.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out.     Drafted. 

Katon,  James  F.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date  un 
known. 

Kuton,  Wesley,  priv.     Died  Sept.  22,  1862. 

Kearnes,  John,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability,  date  unknown. 

Kearnes,  Martin,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability,  date  unknown. 

Killinger,  Samuel,  priv.     Trans,  to  2d  U.  S.  Cavalry.  Oct. 
27,  1862. 

Lar^h,  George,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27.  1865. 

Leiby,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Leferer,  Sanders,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Sub. 

Lucas,  Geo.   B.,  priv.     Dis.  by  S.  O.  Jan.  16,  1865.     Drftd. 

Lucas,  James  G.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.    Drftd. 

Lottig,  Aaron,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Lucas,  Jesse,  priv.    Trai  s.  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date  unknown. 

Locb,  Marx  A.,  priv.     IV! us.  out  at  expr.  of  term. 

Me'sse,  George,  priv.    Wounded  at  Blain's  Cross-roads,  Dec. 
17,  1863.     Mus.  out  at  expr.  of  term,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Moser,  Thos.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  K,  Nov.  16,  1864. 

Mills,  David,  priv.     Trans,  to  45th  P.  V.,  date  unknown. 

Montgomery,  Robt.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Moore,  Samuel,  priv.  Killed  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania 
C.  II.     Veteran. 

Murphy,  Daniel,  priv.     Deserted  April  5,  1865.     Sub. 

Moore,  Wm.,  priv.     Discharged  for  disability,  date  unknown. 

Miller,  John,  priv.     Wounded  Aug.  30,  1862,  at  Bull  Run. 
Discharged  for  wounds. 

Morrison,  Calvin  L.,  priv.     Died  at  Covington,  Ky.,  date 
unknown. 

Mackey,  Wm.,  priv.     Died,  date  unknown. 

McCafferty,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

McMahon,  Michael,  priv.    Discharged  July  11,  1865.    Drftd. 

McGonnigal,  John,  priv.    Dis.  June  1,  1865,  by  G.  O.    Drftd. 

Mcllarney,  Barrty,  priv.     Killed  June  17,  1804,  st  Peters 
burg,  Va.     Veteran. 

29* 


666      HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

O'Neil,  Henry,  priv.     Deserted  April  5,  1865.     Sub. 

Parson,  George,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  ISO"!.    Sub. 

Pierce,  Henry  G.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Powers,  Patrick,  priv.  Discharged  April  24,  1864,  for  dis 
ability.  Veteran. 

Price,  Phineas,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Drafted. 

Fletcher,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Drftd. 

Fennel,  George,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Drftd. 

Parson,  Simon,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  1,  1865.     Drftd. 

Poortnan,  Wilson,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  1,  1865.    Drftd. 

Poorman,  James,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  1,  1865.     Drftd. 

Peters,  Samuel,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Drftd. 

Poff,  Henry,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Prescott,  Charles,  priv.  Wounded  June  1,  1864,  at  Cold 
Harbor,  Va.  Died  June  4.  1864,  from  wounds. 

Powers,  James,  priv.  Wounded  April  19, 1862,  at  Camden, 
N.  C.  Discharged  on  account  of  wounds. 

Rolley,  August,  priv.  Captured.  Died  at  Andersonville, 
Ga.,  May  29,  1864;  grave,  1,454. 

Rodgers,  Geo.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  16, 1864.    Expr.  of  term. 

Reese,  Levi,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  June  1,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Rolley,  Nichols,  priv.  Drftd.  Dis.  June  6,  1865,  by  G.  O. 
Veteran. 

Ricker,  Chas.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Nov.  16,  1864. 

Richards,  Philip,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  K,  March  24,  1864. 

Rodgers,  Henry,  priv.     Deserted  July  6,  1865.     Sub. 

Rapp,  Jacob,  priv.    Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date  unknown. 

Recides,  Win.,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  18, 1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg,  Va.  Discharged  on  account  of  wounds. 

Roan,  Henry  A.,  priv.     Died,  1863,  at  Covingtou, 

Showers,  H.  D.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Smith,  Amos,  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Smith,  George,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Slattery,  Jas",  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Shoppell,  Edw.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Savage,  Frank,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Slack,  Henry  M.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  muster  out. 

Shannon,  Julius  O.,  priv.    Drftd.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1, 1865. 

Shrezer,  Emanuel,  priv.    Drftd.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Sprole,  Hezekiah,  priv.     Drftd.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Smith,  Wm.  A.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  March  24,  1864. 

Slater,  Thos.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Nov.  26,  1864. 

Stidinger,  Samuel  G.,  priv.    Trans,  to  Co.  K,  Nov.  26,  1864. 

Shires,  Michael,  priv.     Trans,  to  45th  P.  V.,  date  unknown. 

Shay,  John,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Showers,  Daniel,  priv.    Trans,  to  2d  U.  S.  Cav.  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Search,  W^m.,  priv.    Trans,  to  2d  U.  S.  Cavalry,  Oct.  27, 1862. 

Scott,  Jas.  A.,  priv.  Trans,  to  2d  U.  S.  Cavalry,  Oct.  27, 1862. 

Sheets,  Daniel,  priv.  Wounded  July  30,  1864,  at  Peters 
burg,  Va.  Died  Aug.  1,  1864. 

Sheets,  Christian,  priv.  Killed  Aug.  19,  1864,  at  Weldon 
Railroad,  near  Yellow  Tavern,  Va. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  667 

Simon,   Christian,  priv.     Uis.  on  surgeon's  certificate,  date 
unknown. 

Tyson,  James,  priv.     Drftd.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Thomas,  George,  priv.     Dis.  by  S.  O.  Jan.  27,  18G5. 

Thompson,  Henry,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  Oct.  16,  1864. 

Troy,  Jeremiah,  priv.  Wounded  at  Petersburg.  Died  Aug. 
1,  1864;  buried  in  9th  A.  C.  Com.,  Meade  Station. 

Thatcher,  Aaron,  priv.  Killed  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilderness, 
Virginia. 

Taylor,  Jos.  B.,  priv.  Drafted.  Died  Dec.  10,  1864;  buried 
in  National  Cemetery,  Arlington,  Va. 

Wellar,  Daniel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Wertz,  George,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Williams,  James,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Sub. 

Waters,  John,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Wolf,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Wertz,  John,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Womer,  Daniel,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Watson,  David,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Wilson,  Wm.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Oct.  16,  1804.    Expr.  of  term. 

Watson,  Win.,  priv.    Dis.  by  S.  O.,  date  unknown. 

Woodriiig,  Hiram,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  B,  date  unknown. 

Walker,  John,  priv.  Drafted.  Drowned  April  25,  1865,  in 
Chesapeake  bay. 

Watts,  Joseph,  priv.     Deserted  June  13,  1865. 

Whipple,  Newton,  priv.     Dis.  on  surgeon's  certificate. 

Wcnrick,  Wm.,  priv.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Wylands,  Lewis  A.,  priv.     Died,  date  unknown. 

Wiggins,  Wallace,  priv.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Watson,  Jackson,  priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date 
unknown. 

Yeager,  Peter  S.,  priv.     Drftd.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Young,  Wm.,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 
Dis.  for  wounds,  date  unknown.  Re-enlisted  Nov.  16,  1863. 
Killed  June  18,  1864,  at  Petersburg,  Va. 

Total  names  on  rolls,  230.* 

*  The  rolls  of  Co.  G  are  very  imperfect  as  to  the  casualties.  Noth 
ing  of  the  kind  was  ever  entered  on  them  except  such  cases  as  were 
compelled  to  be  by  army  regulations.  It  is  to  be  deeply  regretted  that 
there  is  no  way  for  its  noble  braves  to  have  their  battle  scars  individu 
ally  mentioned  ;  in  fact,  so  little  has  been  recorded  of  the  wounded 
that  a  person  would  naturally  suppose  the  company  was  always  out  of 
harm's  way  ;  but  such  was  not  the  case.  Co.  G  was  always  up  to  the 
work,  shoulder  to  shoulder,  with  her  sister  companies.  She  has  the 
undisputed  honor  of  losing  the  first  blood  of  the  regiment  shed  in 
battle— that  pf  James  Dolan,  private,  Feb.  8,  1862,  at  the  taking  of 
Roanoke  Island,  N.  C.  That  the  company  has  suffered  in  wounded 
to  a  terrible  extent  cannot  be  doubted  ;  yet  they  cannot  be  accounted 
for ;  but  that  does  not  make  it  any  the  less  true,  as  it  merely  proves 
the  negligence  of  its  officers  to  insert  their  casualties — showing  that 
they  fought  for  the  good  of  the  flag,  and  not  for  their  own  fame  and 
glory,  completely  discarding  all  personal  honors  and  caring  not  to 
have  their  achievements  heralded  to  the  world — but  below  we  will 


668    HISTORY  OF  THE  FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

ROLL  OF  CO.  II. 

Recruited  in  Union,  Lycoming,  and  Snyder  Counties. 

J.  Merrill  Linn,  captain.     Resigned  April  4,  1864. 

Geo.  Shorkley,  captain.  Pro.  from  adjt.  to  capt.  April  22, 
18G4  ;  to  bvt.  maj.  July  30,  18G4  ;  to  bvt.  lieut.  col.  March  25, 
1865;  to  bvt.  col.  April  9,  1865.  Wounded  April  19,  1862,  at 
Camden,  K.  C.,  and  severely  wounded  at  the  explosion  of  the 
Burnside  mine,  July  30,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  '65. 

Jacob  G.  Beaver,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  2d  to  1st  lieut.  June 
6,  1862.  Killed  at  Antietam,  September  17,  1862. 

Wm.  F.  Campbell,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  2d  liout. 
June  6,  1862  ;  to  1st  lieut.  September  18,  1862.  Wounded  Sep 
tember  17,  1862,  at  Antietam.  Prisoner  from  May  12,  1864, 
to  March  9,  1865.  Mus.  out  April  28,  1865. 

Hugh  McClure,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  1st  lieut. 
May  io,  1865.  Captured  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania  Court 
house,  Va.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Aaron  Smith,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut.  Oc 
tober  23,  1862.  Discharged  November  7,  1863. 

Jacob  H.  Santo,  2d  lieut.  Wounded  September  17,  1862,  at 
Antietam.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut.  April  15,  1864  ;  to 
1st  lieut.  and  adjt.  January  15,  1865.  Veteran. 

David  C.  Brown,  3d  lieut.  Wounded  December  13,  1862,  at 
Fredericksburg,  Va.  ;  captured  May  12,  1864.  Pro.  to  2d 
lieut,  March  16,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

George  Breon,  1st  sergt.  Wounded  at  Fredericksburg  De 
cember  13,  1862  ;  captured  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania  Court 
house.  Pro.  to  1st  sergt.  May  15, 1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  Vet. 

give  a  summary  of  what  casualties  there  can  be  gleaned  from  the  rolls 
to  show  that  they  cannot  hide  all  their  glory,  if  they  want  to. 

Summary  of  Casiialties.— Killed  in  battle,  non-commissioned  offi 
cers,  2  ;  privates,  10.  Died  of  wounds,  privates,  8.  Died  of  disease, 
non-com,  officers,  1 ;  privates,  11.  Died  in  rebel  prisons,  privates,  2. 
Died  by  accident,  2.  Wounded,  commissioned  officers,  1 ;  non-com, 
officers,  1 ;  privates,  11.  Captured,  privates,  3.  Transferred,  com. 
officers,  1;  non-com,  officers,  1;  privates,  38.  Discharged,  com. 
officers,  3 ;  non-com,  officers,  5  ;  privates,  66.  Deserted,  privates,  11. 
Resigned,  com.  officers,  2.  Absent  at  muster-out;  privates,  5. 

Recapitulation. — Killed,  12;  died  from  wounds,  8;  died  from  dis 
ease,  12  ;  died  from  accident,  2  ;  died  in  rebel  prisons,  2.  Total,  36. 
Total  wounded,  13;  captured,  3;  transferred,  40  ;  discharged,  74  ; 
deserted,  11 ;  resigned,  2  ;  absent  sick  at  muster-out,  5.  Total,  148. 
Grand  total  of  casualties,  184. 

It  will  be  observed  that  there  is  but  13  wounded  to  12  killed  out 
right  in  battle,  showing  conclusively  that  Co.  G's  wounded  were  not 
accounted  for.  Nothing  in  the  annals  o.t  modern  warfare  ever  showed 
such  a  disparity  of  casualties,  and  its  wounded  can  safely  be  given 
at  the  lowest  average  percentage,  which  is  60 ;  assuming  it  as  con 
ceded  that  it  suffered  more  than  the  full  or  medium  percentage,  then 
the  medium  would  give  72  wounded,  and  the  highest,  84. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  669 

Jacob  Nyhart,  1st  sergt.  Dis.  September  22,  1862,  on  sur 
geon's  certificate. 

Matthew  Vandine,  1st  sergt.  Pro.  to  1st  sergt.  June  6,  1862. 
Killed  September  17,  1862,  at  Antietam  bridge. 

Harrison  Hause,  sergt.  Pro.  to  sergt.  August  3,  1863.  Cap 
tured  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.  Mus.  out  with  co. 
Veteran. 

Geo.  W.  Brown*  sergt.  Pro.  to  sergt.  May  21,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co. 

John  Alclendarfer,  sergt.  Pro.  to  sergt.  May  21,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co. 

James  Kincaid,  sergt.  Pro.  to  sergt.  June  26,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co. 

Daniel  M.  Wetzell,  sergt.  Wounded  at  Antietam  September 
17,  1862  ;  captured  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.  May  12,  1864.  Dis. 
by  G.  O.  June  26,  1865. 

Seth  J.  Housel,  sergt.  Dis.  to  enlist  in  8th  Regulars,  U.  S. 
infantry,  October  24,  1862. 

Wm.  Allison,  sergt.  Killed  December  13,  1862,  at  Freder 
ick  sburg,  Va. 

II.  J.  Lingerman,  corp.  Wounded  August  19,  1864,  at 
battle  of  Yellow  Tavern,  Va.  Pro.  to  corp.  April  14,  1865. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  Grambling,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  January  1,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co. 

Geo.  H.  Knauf,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  January  15,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co. 

Alfred  Durst,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  January  1, 1865.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  Veteran. 

Henry  Fogleman,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  June  1,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co.  Veteran. 

Michael  Lepley,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  June  16,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co. 

Andrew  Knepp,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  June  16,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co. 

Dietrick  Beckman,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  June 26,  1865.  Mus. 
out  with  co.  Veteran. 

R.  A.  M.  Harner,  corp.  Mus.  out  November  15,  1864.  Ex 
piration  of  term. 

II.  C.  McCormiek,  corp.  Wounded  at  Antietam  September 
17,  1862,  and  again  at  the  Wilderness  May  6,  1864.  Dis.  by  G. 
O.  June  15,  1865. 

J.  Backenhamer,  corp.  Mus.  out  November  15,  1864.  Ex 
piration  of  term. 

Henry  B.  Wetzell,  corp.     Dis.  May  1,~,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Reuben  Baker,  corp.     Dis.  Dec.  30,  1864,  for  disability.  Vet. 

Peter  Koser,  corp.  Dis.  October  24,  1862,  to  enlist  in  8th 
Regulars,  U.  S.  infantry. 

Nicholas  Nicholas,  corp.     Dis.  Dec.  27,  1861,  for  disability. 

Robert  Henry,  corp.  Dis.  October  24,  1862,  to  enlist  in  8th 
U.  S.  infantry. 

Henry  J.  Warner,  corp.  Captured  at  Bull  Run  August  30, 
1862.  Dis.  on  surgeon's  certificate  December  5,  1862. 


670     HISTORY    OF   THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

H.  Coley  MeCormick,  corp.  Wounded  at  Camden,  N.  C., 
April  19,  1862,  at  Antietam  September  17,  1802.  Dis.  by  S.  O. 
February  12,  1864. 

John  Quincy  Adams,  corp.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Reserve  Corps 
November  6,  1803. 

Charles  Merrill,  corp.  Pro.  to  corp.  April  1,  1802  ;  trans,  to 
Vet.  Reserve  Corps  November  6,  1802.  Died  at  Nashville  — 
date  unknown. 

James  M.  Schooley,  corp.  Dis.  December  24,  1802,  for 
wounds  received  at  Antietam  September  17,  1802. 

Jacob  Moore,  muse.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805.    Vet. 

Andrew  Bernade,  mus.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805.  Vet. 

Charles  P.  McFadden,  muse.  Mus.  out  November  15,  1864. 
Expiration  of  term. 

All  house,  Peter,  priv.  Absent  at  mus.  out  by  sen.  of  gen. 
court  martial. 

Armpriester,  Win.,  priv.  Drafted.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July 
27,  1805. 

Angstadt,  Jonas,  priv.    Drft.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  '65. 

Angstadt,  Mabury,  priv.    Drft.    Dis.  June  28,  1805,  by  G.  O. 

Auchenbaugh,  Win.,  priv.     Dis.  June  15.  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Baldwin,  Eleazer,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  '65. 

Blunt,  James,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Beehn,  Henry,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Brownfield,  John,  priv.  Draft.  Absent  at  mus.  out  by  sen. 
of  G.  C.  M. 

Bomgardner,  Danl.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Boyer,  Win.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Draft. 

Boyer,  Jno.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Draft. 

Bordwell,  Danl.   C.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Bobst,  David,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Benner,  Lewis  J.,  priv.  Mus.  out  November  15,  1864.  Ex 
piration  of  term. 

Bovver,  Harrison,  priv.  Wounded  at  Wilderness  May  6, 1804. 
Dis.  February  1,  1805,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Boone,  Daniel,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June,  15,  1865. 

Berkeylile.  David,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  15,  1865.    Draf. 

Bennett,  Miles,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  15,  1805.     Draf. 

Brensinger,  Levi,  priv.  Cap.  Dec.  13,  1802,  at  Fredericks- 
burg.  Killed  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  3,  1864. 

Beaver,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  on  surg.  certif.  March  18,  1803. 

Beck,  Isaac,  priv.     Killed  at  Antietam  Sept.  17,  1802. 

Bear,  Edward,  priv.     Killed  at  Antietam  Sept.  17,  1802. 

Boightol,  Thos.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  G  Nov.  28,  1801. 

Britton,  Simon,  priv.     Trans,  to  reo;.  band  Nov.  10,  1801. 

Brown,  Asa,  priv.    Died  Oct.  28, 1802,  at  Frederick  City,  Md. 

Buskirk,  Jacob,  priv.  Wounded  at  Camden  April  10,  1802. 
Dis.  on  account  of  wounds  Jan.  8,  1803. 

Bastian,  Peter,  priv.    Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps  Nov.  6,  1803. 

Bastian,  Abraham,  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  11,  1803,  for  disability. 

Carey,  Geo.  W.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  671 

Cusseck,  Northiel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.   July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Clouser,  Chas.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  ISoo.   Draf. 

Clark,  David,  priv.  Trans,  from  2cl  Mel.  Vols.  June  30,  1862. 
Cap.  Nov.  23,  1863,  at  Knoxville,  Teun.  Mus.  out  Nov.  15, 
1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Corl,  John,  priv.     Dis.  June  15,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Chrisher,  Win.  F.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov'  15,  1864,  expiration 
of  term. 

Christie,  James,  priv.    Dis.  Oct.  24,  1862,  to  enlist  in  the  8th 
regiment  U.  S.  infantry. 

Cox,  George,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  G  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Calhoun,  Wm.  F.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  G  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Crossmire,  John  J.,  priv      Trans,  to  Co.  G  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Clark,  Joseph  A.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  G  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Doyle,  Matthew,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Doyle,  Jas.,  priv.     Draf.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Dysher,  Matthias,  priv.     Drafted.     Mus.  out  with  co.  Juty 
27,  1865. 

Dumheller,  Abner,  priv.     Drafted.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July 
27,  1865. 

Dilloplains,  Mahlon,  priv.     Drafted.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July 
27,  1865. 

Dawson,  John  L.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Dye,  Richard,  priv.     Dis,  on  surg.  certif.  Feb.  8,  1863. 

Dopp,  John  P..  priv.     Dis.  on  surg.  certif.,  Feb.  8,  1863. 

Detlaven,  Reuben,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  C,  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Diblegorn,  John  J.,  priv.    Dis.  Oct.  24,  1862,  to  enlist  in  4th 
regiment  U.  S.  cavalry. 

Dougherty,  W.  II.,  priv.    Killed  at  Knoxville  Nov.  20,  1863. 

Dougherty,  John,  priv.     Wounded  at  Fredericksburg,  Dec. 
13,  1862.    Trans.  Nov.  6,  1863,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps. 

Dougherty,  James,  priv.     Dis.  Oct.  24,  1862,  to  enlist  in  4th 
regiment  U.  S.  cavalry. 

Doughty,  Calvin,  priv.     Deserted  Sept.  17,  1862. 

Eberly,  And.  F.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,1 865. 

Erwin,  Frederick,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Erdley,  Jno.  W.,  priv.    Wounded  at  Antietam  Sept.  17,  1862. 
Killed  at  North  Anna,  May  27,  1864. 

Everett,  Wm.,  priv.    Dis.  Dec.  3,  1862,  for  disability. 

Egolf,  Samuel,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  C,  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Espenship,  David,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  C,  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Fies,  Henry,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  Co.  July  27,  1865.    Draf. 

Fike,  John,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Forte,  Geo.  W.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Feuring,  Geo.,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  25,  1865. 

Frederick,  Ebenezer,  priv.     Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps  Nov. 
19,  1864. 

Farley,  Samuel,  priv.    Died  at  Knoxville,  Dec.  19,  1863. 
•    Fox,  Wm.  II.  R,  priv.    Trans,  to  co.  C  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Frynte,  Geo.  II.,  priv.     Dis.  Oct.  24,  1862,  to  enlist  in  8th 
regiment,  U.  S.  infantry. 

Grambling,  Jacob,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 


672    HISTORY  OF  THE  FIFTY-FIRST  REGIMENT 

Getty,  David  H.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Gardner,  Wm.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

Gallagher,  Wm.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Grier,  Thos.  G.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Sept.  23,  1864.  Died  at 
Morehead  City,  N.  C.,  Oct.  6,  1864. 

Goss,  Simon,  priv.  Cap.  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H. 
Died  at  Florence,  S.  C. 

Henry,  Adam.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Ilefmer,  Jonathan,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hoffman,  Thos.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Heffilfmger,  George,  priv.  Absent  at  mus.  out  by  sentence 
of  general  court  martial.  Drafted. 

Hertzog,  Emanuel,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Hartline,  Daniel,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Hartline,  David,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Haas,  Wm.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Drafted. 

Harris,  Joseph,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hulslander,  Geo.  F.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Humphrey,  John,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Holland,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Ilartz,  John,  priv.  Cap.  May  12, 1864.  Died  June  19,  1864, 
at  Andersonville,  Ga.,  grave  2,185).  Veteran. 

Harding,  JewettS.,  priv.  Wounded  and  pris.  Aug.  CO,  1862, 
at  Bull  Run.  Dis.  Nov.  13,  1862. 

Hitesman,  Isaiah,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  15, 1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Ilain,  Henry,  priv.    Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps  Nov.  6,  1863. 

Hain,  John,    priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.   Corps  Nov.  6,  1863. 

Ingerson,  Ilillman,  priv.    Draf.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  6,  1865. 

Isidel,  August,  priv.  Sub.      Deserted  June,  1865. 

Jones,  Thos.,  priv.    Trans,  to  Co.  G,  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Kritz,  Daniel,  priv.    Draf.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Kelly,  James  T.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Knepp,  Simon,  priv.     Draf.    Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  15,  1865. 

Krepp,  Simon,  priv.    Draf.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  15,  1865. 

Kyszeroski,  Joseph,  priv.  Sub.  Died  at  Alexandria,  June 
7,  1865. 

Kelly,  Jas.  A.,  priv.    Died  Mar.  27,  1862,  at  Roanoke  Island. 

Keiticr,  Henry  J.,  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  16,  1863,  for  disability. 

Knode,  Albion  G.,  priv.    Dis.  Sept.  27,  1862,  for  disability. 

Loimbacb,  J.  Calvin,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lott,  John  W.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Leamon,  John  E.,  priv.  AVounded  at  South  Mountain,  Sept. 
14,1862;  again  at  Wilderness,  May  6,  1861.  Dis.  Dec.  24,  1864. 

Lyon,  Conrad,  priv.    Dis.  June  15,  1865,  by  G.  O.    Drafted. 

Lattimer,  Wm.  J.,  priv.  Cap.  Died  at  Florence,  S.  C.,  Oct. 
14,  1864. 

Lennig,  Jacob,  priv.  Wounded  April  19,  1862,  at  Camdcn, 
N.  C.  Died  May  3,  1862,  from  wounds. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  673 

Lynch,  Thos.  J.,  priv.  Promoted  to  2d  lieut.  in  Co.  C,  date 
unknown. 

Murphy,  Joseph,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Moyer,  Daniel,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.   Draf. 

Mocherman,  Jno.  H.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Moll,  Joseph  A.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Man-,  Thos.  P.,  priv.    Dis.  Mar.  4,  1865,  for  disability.    Vet. 

Miller,  Wm.  A.,  priv.  Cap.  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania. 
Discharged  June  15,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Moore,  John,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  15,  1865. 

Miller,  Henry,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  15,  1865.    Drafted. 

Myers,  Wm.  H.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  15,  1865.     Draf. 

Moyer,  Daniel  13.,  priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date 
unknown. 

Miller,  John,  priv.  Dis.  Oct.  24,  1862,  to  enlist  in  4th  U.  S. 
cavalry. 

Miller,  Daniel  S.,  priv.  Wounded  at  South  Mountain,  Sept. 
14,  1862.  Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  expiration  of  term. 

Murphy,  John,  priv.     Dis.  Sept.  22,  1862,  for  disability. 

Miller,  Jeremiah,  priv.    Died  Dec.  2,  1861,  at  Annapolis,  Md. 

Murphy,  James,  priv.    Trans,  to  Co.  C  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Meisse,  George,  priv.    Trans,  to  Co.  G  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Miller,  Samuel  S.,  priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps  Nov.  6, 
1863. 

Marks,  Levi,  priv.    Killed  at  Antietam  Sept.  17,  1862. 

McMurtrie,  Isaac,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

McEwen,  Samuel  S.,  priv.    Dis.  April  18,  1864,  by  S.  O. 

Nicman,  John  A.  Wounded  June  17,  1864,  at  Petersburg. 
Died  August  5,  1864,  from  wounds. 

Oakes,  AVm.  L.,  priv.    Dis.  June  12,  1863,  for  disability. 

Purcell,  Geo.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Phillips,  A.  F.  C.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864,  ex.  of  term. 

Passell,  Robert  W.,  priv.  Wounded  at  South  Mountain, 
Sept.  14,  1862.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Pareby,  Joseph,  priv.  Killed  at  Petersburg,  April  2,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Pearson,  Jas.  C.    Sub.    Deserted  June,  1865. 

Phliger,  Jacob,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.   Vet. 

Rhoades,  Jacob,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Rexford,  Henry  E.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Ream,  Jacob,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  June  1,  1865,  by  G.  O. 

Ritter,  John  F,,  priv.  Dis.  Oct.  24, 1862,  to  enlist  in  4th  U.  S. 
Cavalry. 

Snyder,  Nathaniel,  priv.    Killed  at  S.  Mount,  Sept.  14,  1862. 

Smith,  Peter,  priv.  Cap.,  Aug.  21,  1864,  at  Yellow  Tavern. 
Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co.  Veteran. 

Smith,  David,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Slottman,  Danl.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Swab,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Snyder,  Saml.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Shreck,  Jno.  V.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 


674     HISTORY    OF  THE    FIFTY- FIRST   REGIMENT 

Swarerly,   Adam,  priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Serwatyness,  Jos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Shappee,  Devier,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  Co.  July  27,  1865. 

ShatFer,  Levi  J.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  Co.  July  27,  1865. 

Search,  Thos.  F.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864.     Expira 
tion  of  term. 

Sholley,  Win.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864.     Expiration 
of  term. 

Smith,  John  D.,  priv.    Drafted.    Dis.  byG.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Smith,  John  H.,  priv.    Dis.  June  14,  1865,  for  disability.   Vet. 

Scales,  Edwin  K.  B.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  25,  1864.     Ex 
piration  of  term. 

Souders,  Ephraim,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  K.  Nov.  10,  1864. 

Shriner,  Win.  H.,  priv.     Killed  at  Petersburg  July  1,  1864. 

Smith,  Jacob,  priv.     Cap.  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania  C. 
H.     Died  at  Andersonville,  Ga.,  July  5,  1864;  grave,  2,941. 

Smith,  Isaiah,  priv.     Cap.  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania  C.' 
H.     Died  at  Andersonville,  Ga.,  1864. 

Smith,  Frederick,  priv.     Killed  at  Wilderness  May  6,  1864. 
Veteran. 

Slmler,  Harrison,  priv.     Deserted  Feb.,  1864. 

Stewart,  Chas.  R.,  priv.     Dis.  Get  27,  1863,  for  disability. 

Sullivan,  Patrick,  priv.     Trans   to  Co.  C  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Steltz,  Win.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  C,  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Smith,  John  F.,  priv.     Dis.  Nov.  28,  1862,  for  disability. 

Turner,  James,  priv.     Drafted.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865. 

Taylor,  Samuel,  priv.     Died  June  15,  1864,  at  White  House 
Landing,  Va. 

Titus,  Lewis  G.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co   E,  Nov.  28,  1861. 

Temple,  Chas.  W.  A.,  priv.     Deserted  June  17,  1863. 

Umstead,  John  C.,  priv.     Trans,  to  Co.  C,  Nov.  28,  1861. 

,Uhl,  Christian,  priv.    Dis.  Jan.  15, 1865;  disability.    Drafted. 
'  Vi\Updegraph,  Lewis,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mas.  out. 

Vangeeser,  Geo.,  priv.  ""Wounded  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilderness. 
Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  29,  1865. 

Williamson,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Wellings,  Win.  J.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Wcntzell,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Weaver,  Thos.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  16,  1864.     Expiration 
of  term. 

Wiery,  Win.,  priv.     Dis.  by  sentence  of  G.  C.  martial. 

Wagore,  Geo.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1, 1865.     Drafted. 

Wood,  Aaron,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Drafted. 

Williamson,  Aaron,  priv.     Killed  June  3, 1864,  at  C.  Harbor. 

Wittcs,  Isaac,  priv.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Watkins,  Benj.,  priv.     Trans,  to  reg'l  band  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Williams,  Win.,  priv.     Trans,  to  reg'l  band  Nov.  16,  1861. 

Wiesenbach,  Ant'y,  priv.     Wounded  at  Antietam,  Sept.  17, 
1803.     Dis.  April  7,  1863,  on  account  of  wounds. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  675 

Wiesenbach,  Leo,  priv.  Dis.  Oct.  21,  1862,  to  enlist  in  8th 
U.  S.  Infantry. 

Youngman,  John  C.,  priv,     Dis.  by  S.  0.,  date  unknown. 

Yoder,  David,  priv.  Cap.  at  North  Anna  May  27,  1804.  Dis. 
by  G.  O.  June  2,  1863. 

Young,  David  J.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Zechraan,  Chas.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Total  on  the  rolls,  236.* 


ROLL  OF  CO.  I. 

Recruited  in  Montgomery  County. 

George  R.  Pechin,  captain.     Resigned  June  21,  1862. 

George  W.  Bisbina:,  captain.  Pro.  from  1st  lieut.  to  capt., 
June  23,  1862.  Wounded  at  Jackson,  Miss.,  July  16,  1863. 
Wounded  twice  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.,  May  12,  1864.  Died 
June  7,  1804,  from  wounds. 

Thomas  II.  Parker,  captain.  Wounded  at  Antietam  and  at 
Jackson,  Miss.  Pro.  from  com.-sergt.  to  capt.,  Dec.  2,  1864. 
Mus.  out  with  com.  Veteran. 

*  Summary  of  Casualties  in  Co.  H. — Killed — Commissioned  officers, 
1 ;  non.-coui.  officers,  2;  privates,  13.  Died  of  wounds — Privates,  2. 
Died  in  rebel  prisons — Privates,  5.  Died  of  disease — Non.-com.  offi 
cers — 1 ;  privates,  7.  Captured — Com.  officers,  2  ;  uon.  com.  officers, 
4  ;  privates,  11.  Wounded — Com.  officers,  3  ;  non.-com.  officers,  8  ; 
privates,  14.  Discharged— Com.  officers,  1 ;  non.-com.  officers,  15  ; 
privates,  70.  Transferred — Com.  officers,  1 ;  non.-com.  officers,  2  ; 
privates,  28.  Resigned— Com.  officers,  1.  Deserted— privates,  5 ; 
Absent,  in  arrest — Privates,  2.  Absent  at  mustering  out — Privates,  3. 

Recapitulation. — Total  killed,  16  ;  died  of  wounds,  2  ;  died  in  rebel 
prisons,  5  ;  died  of  disease,  8 ;  captured,  17  ;  wounded,  25  ;  discharged, 
86  ;  transferred,  31  ;  resigned,  1  ;  deserted,  5  ;  absent  in  arrest,  2  ; 
absent  sick  at  mustering  out,  3.  Grand  total  casualties,  201. 

Co.  H  has  apparently  a  heavy  list  of  casualties  ;  201  out  of  a  roll 
of  236,  leaving  but  35  that  were  not  accounted  for,  providing  the  con 
tingencies  are  distributed,  one  to  a  man.  But  the  observant  reader 
can  easily  detect  the  cause  by  looking  over  the  roll  and  noticing  that 
some  of  the  men  furnish  two  or  three  cases  ;  for  instance,  private 
Jewett  S.  Harding  was  wounded,  captured,  and  discharged  ;  he  alone 
furnishes  three  cases. 

Co.  H.'s  rolls  are  more  complete,  with  the  exception  of  Co.  A,  than 
any  of  the  other  companies  ;  still  it  shows  for  itself  the  deficiency  in 
its^wounded,  having  only  one- third  more  wounded  than  killed.  Its 
average,  at  the  lowest  percentage,  would  put  its  wounded  at  80  men  ; 
it  is  certain  that  that  is  too  low. 

Co.  H  needs  no  further  remarks  on  her  record.  It  has  made  it 
as  bright  and  as  enviable  as  the  best  of  them,  and  is  fully  satisiied 
that  it  has  honestly  complied  with  its  contract  with  the  United  States, 
and  not  one  dollar  received  without  rendering  its  equivalent  in  putting 
down  the  rebellion. 


676       HISTORY    OF    THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

George  Schall,  1st  lieut.     Pro.  from  2d  to  1st  lieut.,  June 23, 

1862.  Mus.  out  Oct.  24,  1864.     Expr.  of  term. 

Lewis  Patterson,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  1st  lieut., 
May  21,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Mark  R.  Supplee,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  2cl  lieut.  from  1st  sergt., 
June  23,  1862.  Severely  wounded  Dec.  13, 1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg.  Mus.  out  Nov.  15,  1864.  Expr.  of  term. 

Geo.  W.  Patterson,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  2d  lieut., 
May  21,  1865.  Mus.  cut  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

John  R.  Davis,  1st  sergt.  Pro.  to  1st  ser^t.  May  21,  1865. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Captured^May  12,  1864,  at 
Spottsylvania  C.  H.  Wounded  May  12,  1864.  Veteran. 

Enoch  B.  Kirby,  1st  sergt.     Died  Feb.  22, 1863,  of  diarrhoea. 

George  Carney,  sergt.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862— again 
June  28,  1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Win.  Pope,  sergt.  Wounded  July  15,  1863,  at  Jackson, 
Miss.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Geo.  W.  S.  Pennell,  sergt.  Wounded  at  Antietam,  Sept. 
17,  1862,  and  Aug.  19,  1864,  at  Yellow  Tavern,  Va.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

James  Cameion,  sergt.  Captured  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsyl 
vania  C.  H.  Mus.  out  with  co.  Veteran. 

Richard  Martin,  sergt.     Died  at  Camp  Nelson,  Ky.,  Jan.  2, 

1863.  Wounded  April  19,  1862,  at  Camden,  N.  C.,  by  a  solid 
shot. 

Stephen  S.  Davis,  sergt.  Killed  June  17,  1864,  at  Peters 
burg,  Va.  Veteran. 

Andrew  S.  Leedom,  sergt.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at 
Fredericksburg.  Discharged  April  9,  1863,  on  account  of 
wounds. 

Thos.  T.  Sohoch,  sergt.  Killed  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain. 

J.  Clark  Davis,  sergt.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Geo.  B.  Slough,  corp.  Captured  May  27,  1864,  at  North 
Anna  river.  Died  at  Andersonville,  Ga.,  March  28,  1865. 

Jno.  M.  Engle,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Jas.  Tinney,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Henry  C.  Davis,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Saml.  E.  Bradbury,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Henry  B.  Pope,  corp.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Frederick  Ilolbine,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Francis  R.  Keating,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Jas.  Y.  Shainline,  corp.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred 
ericksburg.  Mus.  out  Sept.  27,  1864.  Expr.  of  term. 

John  George,  corp.  Wounded  July  30, 1864,  at  Petersburg. 
Died  from  wounds  Aug.  8,  1864.  Veteran. 

Jas.  Manger,  corp.     Died  Feb.  12,  1862,  at  Roanoke  Island. 

Thos.  P.  Davis,  corp.     Killed  Sept.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam. 

Hugh  McGill,  corp.     Trans,  to  Inv.,  Corps,  Sept.  27,  1863. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      677 

John  Cox,  corp.     Discharged  for  disabilitj7,  Nov.  IB,  1862. 

Jacob  J.  Tompkins,  muse.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 
Veteran . 

Jas.  Chase,  muse.     Absent  in  arrest  at  mus.  out.     Veteran. 

Anderson,  Levi,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Anderson,  John  H.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.    O.,   June  1,  1865. 

Armstrong,  Ed.,  priv.     Discharged  by  S.  O.,  Oct   18,  1862. 

Anderson,  Win.  J.,  priv.     Killed  at  South  Mountain,  Sept. 
14,  1862. 

Buley,  Chas.,  priv.     Wounded  at  Antietam,  Sept.  17,  1862. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Veteran. 

Bisbing,  A.  H.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Barry,  Jno.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Bassert,  Adam,    priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.    July  27,    1865. 
Drafted. 

Bayley,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Bloom,  David,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Brower,  John  H.,  priv.  Drafted.  Discharged  by  G.  O., 
June  2,  1865. 

Bottorf,  Martin,  priv.     Drftd.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Brown,  Wm.,  priv.     Drftd.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Brower,  Jacob,  priv.     Drftd.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Barrett,  And.  C.,  priv.    Drftd.    Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Brady,  Isaac,  priv.     Drftd.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Barrell,  Jacob,  priv.     Drftd.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  2,  1865. 

Buggy,  Dennis,  priv.     Died  of  disease  Oct.  14,  1864.     Vet. 

Bangs,  James,  priv.     Deserted  May  12,  1864. 

Baker,  Thos.  L.,  priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  Nov.  8, 
1863. 

Brady,  James,  priv.  Killed  by  lightning  while  on  picket  at 
Milldale,  Miss. 

Buggy,  Robert,  priv.     Deserted. 

Brown,  Hugh,  C.,  priv.  Wounded  at  South  Mountain, 
Sept.  14,  1862.  Trans,  to  1st  U.  S.  Cavalry,  Sept.  22,  1862. 

Burns,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  on  writ  of  habeas  corpus,  1861. 

Bankuss,  Henry,  priv.   Dis.  May  1,  1862,  at  Newbern,  N.  C. 

Broom,  Thos.  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  2,  1863,  for  disability. 

Coatner,  James,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Cornog,  Thos.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Vet. 

Carey,  John,  priv.     Drftd.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  13,  1865. 

Coleman,  John  N.,  priv.  Drftd.  Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  13, 
1865. 

Campbell,  Zach. ,  priv.    Killed  at  South  Mtn.,  Sept.  14,  1862. 

Carr,  Morton  C.,  priv.  Deserted  Aug.  24,  1863,  at  Sulphur 
Springs. 

Detterline,  Joseph,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Doyle,  Edward,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Digt maker,  Max.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Dyslier,  Reuben,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  of  May  17-18,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Dorr,  Henry,  priv.  Captured  at  Bull  Run,  Aug.  20,  1862, 
and  again  Dec.  15,  1863,  at  Cumberland  Gap.,  East  Term. 
Died  at  Belh-  Isle,  Mar.  25,  1864. 


678      HISTOKY    OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Davis,  R  Clarkson,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  14,  1862,  at  South 
Mountain.  Trans,  to  1st  U".  S.  Artillery,  Sept.  22,  18G2. 

Davis,  E.  Lewis,  priv.  Wounded  at  South  Mountain,  Sept. 
14,  1862.  Died  September  24,  1862,  from  wounds. 

Dougherty,  Matthew,  priv.  Trans,  to  1st  U.  S.  Artillery, 
Sept.  22,  1862. 

Deeds,  Jehu,  priv.     Dis.  Oct.  18,  1862,  at  Pleasant  Valley. 

Edwards,  Saml.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Evans,  Chas.  V.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Eck,  Chas.  E.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Drftcl. 

Edsell,  Noble,  priv.     Sub.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  May  17,  1865. 

Elliott,  John,  priv.     Discharged  by  G.  O.,  May  18,  1865. 

Emrich,  Jacob,  priv.  Wounded  at  Antietam  Sept.  17,  1862. 
Trans.  September  28,  1863,  to  Invalid  Corps  at  Camp  Dick 
Robinson,  Kentucky. 

Fulton,  Geo.  AV.,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862.  Mus.  out 
with  co.  Vet. 

Fox,  Geo.  F.,  priv.     Sub.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865, 

Fryer,  Amos,  priv.     Mus.  out  witli  co.  July  27,  1865.    Drftd. 

Fry,  Dominick,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Frieze,  Samuel,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  12,  1865.    Drftd. 

Fetzer,  Miclil.  W.,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  12,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Fox,  Geo.  H.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.,  June  12,  1865.     Sub. 

Felton,  Robert  K.,  priv.  Killed  at  Fort  Morton,  Va.,  Feb. 
24,  1865.  Drafted. 

Farley,  James,  priv.  Deserted  while  on  duty  at  Boousboro' 
Ferry,  Kentucky  river,  Ky.,  May  1,  1863. 

Gordon,  Howard  E.,  priv.  Wounded  Aug.  19,  1864,  at  the 
Yellow  Tavern,  Va.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Gehman,  Ambrose,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Gehman,  Henry  II.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Gimmell,  Saml.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Gallagher,  James,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  12,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Glisson,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  Art.  Oct.  25,  1862. 

Harrington,  M.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Hibbert,  James  II..  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Herdenstine,  Thosi,  priv.  Wounded  June  20,  1864.  Died 
Dec.  1,  1864. 

Herman,  John,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Hunsberger,  Henry,  priv.  Discharged  by  G.  O.,  June  10, 
1865.  Drafted. 

Hummel,  Jacob,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Ilarbst,  Jacob,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Drftd. 

Harlin,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1805. 

llessly,  Wm.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      679 

Hedgelen,  Enoch  H.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  10,  1865. 
Drafted. 
Hall,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.,  June  10,  18(5,5.     Drftcl. 

Hiney,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  S.  O.,  Oct.  26,  1864.     Drftcl. 

Hattle,  Philip,  priv.  Cap.  May  12, 1864,  at  Spottsylvania  C. 
H.  Died  June  36, 1865,  at  Camp  Parole,  Mil.  Veteran. 

Heard,  John,  priv.     Died  at  City  Point,  Va.,  June  25,  1864. 

Heard,  Thos.,  priv.  Died  at  Frederick  City,  Md.,  Sep.  20, 
1862. 

Herd,  John  R.,  priv.  "Wounded  Dec.  13, 1862,  at  Fredericks- 
burg,  Va.  Dis.  on  account  of  wounds  1863. 

Hamilton,  James,  priv.  Des.  Aug.  18,  1862,  at  Kelly's 
Ford,  Va. 

Holigon,  Peter,  priv.     Des.  Jan.  6,  1862. 

Iredell,  Jas.  W.,  priv.    Dis.  by  S.  0.  April  28,  1863. 

Jenkins,  John  W.,  priv.     Des.  Aug.  28,  1862. 

Kelley,  Danl. ,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.     Sub. 

Krieble,  Geo.,priv.     Killed  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fredkbg..  Va. 

Long,  George,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Draf. 

Ly singer,  Danl.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Lyons,  Saml.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Lyons,  Shuman,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  10,  1865.     Sub. 

Morgan,  Joseph,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Mulner,  Ludwig,  priv.  Mus.  [out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Miese,  Peter,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Marbaker,  Ed.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Magee,  Daniel,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Milne,  Job,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Martin,  Robt.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Draf. 

Moyer,  Ulrich,  priv.     Dis.  In*  G.  O.  June  10,  1865.     Draf. 

Meister,  Antrim,  priv.  Wounded  Dec.  13,  1862,  at  Fred- 
ericksburg,  Va.  Dis.  Oct.  24,  1864,  at  cxpr.  of  term. 

Moweiy,  Reuben,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  10,  1865.     Draf. 

Miller,  Mark,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  10,  1865.     Draf. 

Murphy,  John,  priv.  Wounded  Sep.  17,  1862,  at  Antietam, 
Md.  Killed  May  6,  1864,  at  Wilderness.  Veteran. 

Myers,  Jacob^IL,  priv.  Wounded  Sep.  17,  1862,  slightly 
and  deserted  same  day,  retaken  Oct.  5,  1863.  Absent  in  arrest 
by  sen.  of  G.  C.  M.  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Michener,  Phineas,  priv.  Dis.  by  S.  O.  May  1,  1862,  at 
Newbern. 

^  Myers,   Saml.,  II.,  priv.     Dis.   by  S.   O.    July  14,  1862,   at 
Newbern. 

Myers,  Geo.  W.,  priv.  Drowned  at  the  sinking  of  the 
steamer  West  Point  in  the  Potomac  Oct.  26,  1862. 

Moore,  Fredk.  K,  priv.     Dis.  Dec.  9,  1862,  on  surg.  cer. 

Milton,  James,  priv.  Killed  by  the  accidental  discharge  of  a 
comrade's  gun  while  guard  of  a  forage  train  at  Jackson,  Miss., 
July  9,  1863. 

McKuen,  Edward,  priv.     Deserted  June  14,  1865. 

McGolrich,  Thos. ,  priv.  Wounded  at  Fredericksburg,  Va. 
Died  from  wounds  Jan.  1,  1863. 


680     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

McGill,  Arthur,  priv.    Died  of  disease  at  Camp  Parke,  Ky., 

Aug.  28,  1863. 

Oinlor,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

O'Hara,  Ptk.,  priv.  Deserted.  Dis.  by  an  informal  order, 
Oct.  14,  1862,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 

Pierce,  George  W.,priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Powers,  Chas.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  28, 1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Peters,  Geo.  E.,  priv.  Cap.  Nov.  16,  1863,  at  Campbell's 
Station.  E.  Term.,  was  held  by  the  enemy  till  Feb.  27,1865. 
Mus.  out  May  8,  1865,  to  date  March  4,  1865. 

Potter,  Thos.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  12,  1865.     Sub. 

Pluck,  Jacob,  priv.     Trans,  to  1st  U.  S.  Cav.  Sep.  22,  1862. 

Pugh,  Levi,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  Feb.  2,  1863. 

Quick,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  7,  1865.     Draf. 

Kousb,  Wm.  A.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Sub. 

Rinehart,  Thos.,  priv.  Wounded  severely  Aug.  19,  1864,  at 
Yellow  Tavern,  Va.  Dis.  for  wounds  June  2,  1865.  Vet. 

Rively,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Recruit. 

Reese,  Chas.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draf. 

Robinson,  Adam,  priv.  Killed  at  Camden  N.  C.  April  19, 
1862. 

Rambo,  Wm.,  priv.  Died  of  disease  at  Newborn,  N.  C.,  May 
6,  1862. 

Stiver,  Francis,  priv.  Wounded  at  Gen.  Pope's  H.  Q.,  at 
Sulphur  Springs,  Va.,  Aug.  28,  1862.  Dis.  Nov.  28,  1864. 

Stiver,  John  J.,  priv.  Wounded  at  Spottsylvania  May  12, 
1864.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Recruit. 

Schlichter,  Milton,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Recruit. 

Smith,  Chas.  A.,  priv.  Sub.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 
1865. 

Snyder,  Chas.  H.,  priv.  Sub.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  2 T, 
1865. 

Slmey,  Franklin,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  22,  1865. 

Springer,  Jno.  F.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Seiberet,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Mus.   out  with  co.  July  27,   1865. 

Shelley,  Wm.  A.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Shales,  Miles  D.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  22,  1865.     Draf. 

Straw,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  22,  1865.     Draf. 

Sunckinan,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  8,  1865.    Sub. 

Siedtz,  Andrew,  priv.    Died  Sep.  18, 1864,  at  City  Point,  Va. 

Smiley,  Geo.  W.,  priv.  Dis.  for  disability  May  1,  1862,  at 
Newbern. 

Troy,  Thos.,  priv.  Cap.  at  Bull  Run  Aug.  29,  1862,  escaped 
Nov.  1,  1862,  frequently  visited  the  enemy  afterwards  to  gratify 
his  curiosity,  was  always  successful  in  getting  back  to  his  own 
lines.  Mus.  out  with  costly  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Treevitts,  Saml.,  priv. "=  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Vaughn,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  10,  1865.     Draf. 

Verguson,  James,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  10,1865.    Draf. 

Wampole,  Abraham,  priv.  Wounded  April  19-,  1865,  at 
Camden,  N.  C.  Cap.  or  killed  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsylvania 
C.  II.,  never  been  heard  of.  Veteran. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      681 

Wharram,  Jno.  R.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Warner,  Loman  D.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Walker,  Gotlieb,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Wails,  James  J.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  Juljr  27,  1805. 

Wliarton,  Joshua,  priv.  Mus.  out  Nov.  28,  186-1.  Expr.  of 
term. 

Wilfong,  Ed.  K,  priv.  Mus.  out  Nov.  28,  1864,  expr.  of 
term. 

Wheeler,  James,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draf. 

Wheeler,  Win.,  priv.     Dis  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draf. 

Wasson,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865.     Draf. 

Woodruff,  Geo.  W.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2, 1865.    Draf. 

Watson,  Andrew,  priv.     Deserted.  Sep.  12,  1862. 

Young,  Win.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Sub. 

Total  names  on  the  rolls,  189.* 

*  Summary  of  casualties. — Killed — Non-commissioned  officers,  4  ; 
privates,  7.  Killed  by  accident — Privates  3.  Died  of  wounds — Com 
missioned  officers,  1  ;  non-commissioned  officers,  1 ;  privates,  3. 
Died  in  rebel  prisons — Non-commissioned  officers,  1 ;  privates,  2. 
Died  of  disease — Non-commissioned  officers,  3  ;  privates,  6.  Re 
signed — Commissioned  officers,  1.  Wounded — Commissioned  offi 
cers,  5  ;  non-commissioned  officers,  10  ;  privates,  17.  Captured — 
Non-commissioned  officers,  3  ;  privates,  5.  Discharged — Commis 
sioned  officers,  2 ;  non-commissioned  officers,  2;  privates,  53. 
Transferred — Non-commissioned  officers,  1 ;  privates,  7.  Absent  in 
arrest  at  muster-out,  2.  Deserters — Privates,  1.1. 

Recapitulation. — Total  killed,  11  ;  killed  by  accident,  3;  died  of 
wounds,  5;  died  in  rebel  prisons,  3;  died  of  disease,  9;  resigned, 
1;  wounded,  32;  captured,  5;  discharged,  57;  transferred,  8; 
absent  at  muster-out,  2 ;  deserters,  11. — Grand  total  casualties, 
147. 

Co.  I,  like  all  the  companies  in  the  51st,  is  deficient  in  having  its 
wounded  entered  on  ils  rolls,  but  it  speaks  as  a  voucher  that  tbe 
other  companies'  casualties  are  put  at  much  too  low  a  figure,  for 
while  tbe  hardest  fighting  was  going  on  from  the  10th  of  May,  1864, 
till  within  a  few  days  of  the  last  of  November  of  that  year,  more 
than  one  half  of  Co.  I's  enlisted  men  fit  for  duty  were  on  special  or 
detached  service  away  from  the  51st,  while  the  men  of  the  other  com 
panies  were  nearly  all  with  their  regiment.  As  a  proof  of  the  truth 
of  this  assertion  Captain  Bisbing  had  only  18  enlisted  men  with  him 
to  take  into  battle  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.,  May  12,  1864,  while  the 
other  companies  had  from  30  to  35  men  to  take  in,  and  at  Cold 
Harbor  Co.  I  had  17  men  only,  and  that  was  about  the  highest  till 
after  the  first  detachment  of  drafted  recruits  were  sent  to  the  regi 
ment  in  October,  1864.  Its  list  of  casualties  is  very  nearly  correct,  all 
that  it  is  deficient  in  is  the  wounded.  None  who  remained  on  duty 
after  being  wounded  are  counted  in  the  list.  The  one  case  of  Abra 
ham  Wampole  is  included  in  tbe  killed,  as  those  who  were  captured  at 
the  time  say  they  never  saw  or  heard  of  him  during  their  captivity. 
He  was  known  to  have  been  wounded,  but  that  is  all  up  to  this  time 
(1869)  that  has  developed  concerning  him. 

30 


682     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

ROLL  OF  CO.  K. 

Recruited  in  Union  and  Northampton  Counties. 

JolmE.  Titus,  captain.     Resigned  Sep.  10,  1862. 

Geo.  P.  Carman,  cap.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  2d  lieut.  Dec. 
28, 18G1  ;  to  1st  lieut.  July  26,  1862  ;to  capt.  Sep.  10,  1862.  Mus. 
out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Win.  S.  Mellick,  capt.  Wounded  Nov.  16, 1863,  at  Campbell's 
Station,  E.  Tcnn.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  1st  sergt.  Dec.  28,  1861 ; 
to  1st  lieut.  Dec.  19,  1864 ;  to  capt.  April  18,  1865.  Mus.  out 
•with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Josiah  Kelley,  1st  lieutenant.     Resigned  July  25,  1862. 

John  B.  Linn,  1st  lieut.     Resigned  March  9,  1863. 

Jacob  Fryburger,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  1st  lieut. 
March  11,  1864.  Wounded  at  Petersburg  June  18,  1864.  Dis. 
for  wounds  Oct  3,  1864.  Veteran. 

Jacob  Hawk,  1st  lieut.  Pro.  from  1st  sergt.  to  1st  lieut. 
April  18, 1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

J.  Franklin  Beale,  2d  lieut.  Res.  Dec.  28, 1861,  re-comniis- 
sioned  Sep.  29,  1862.  Res.  April  7,  1864. 

Frank  B.  Sterner,  2d  lieut.  Wounded  at  Campbell's  Station, 
E.  Tenn.,  Nov.  16,  1863.  Killed  at  Spottsylvania May  12, 1864. 

John  Vanlew,  2d  lieut.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  2d  lieut.  April  18, 
1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Danl.  W.  Eichman,  1st  sergeant.  Pro.  from  sergt.  to  1st 
sergt.  April  18,  1865.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

John  C.  Dittler,  sergeant.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Geo.  II.  Sherry,  sergt.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Theo.  Mosor,  sergt.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Vet. 

Uriah  F.  Dean,  sergt.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Vet. 

Franklin  S.  Mover,  sergt.  Died  June  16,  1864,  of  wounds 
received  at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.,  May  12,  1864,  buried  at 
Arlington.  Veteran. 

Thos.  C.  Pierce,  sergt.  Killed  at  Petersburg  June  17,  1864. 
Veteran. 

Jas.  Gibson,  sergt.  Killed  at  Petersburg  July  30,  1864.  Vet. 

Albert  Snyder,  sergt.  Died  from  wounds  received  at  Antie- 
tara,  Sep.  17,  1862. 

Thco.  Oden welder,  corporal.  Wounded  at  Wilderness  May 
6,  1864.  Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co.  July  27,  1865.  Veteran. 

Francis  Ludwig,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Jas.  Barnhart,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Chris.  E.  Cole,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Francis  Truxell,  corp.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Vet. 

Rich'd  Berryman,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Nicholas  Reinhart,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Jacob  F.  Colo,  corp.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

John  P.  Huber,  corp.  Dis.  March  18,  1865,  for  disability. 
Veteran. 

John  Sutton,  corp.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  11,  1865.     Veteran. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  683 

David  Shingle,  corp.  Killed  at  Cold  Harbor  June  3,  1864. 
Veteran. 

Jacob  Truxell,  corp.  Killed  at  Petersburg  July  7,  1864.  Vet. 

Thos.  Foster,  corp.  Killed  at  Yellow  Tavern.,  Aug.  19, 
1864.  Veteran. 

Henry  G.  Dentler,  corp.  Cap.  Died  at  Andersonville,  Ga., 
May  17,  1864.  Grave  1,161. 

Danl.  Troxell,  corp.     Trans,  to  U.  8.  Reg.  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Win.  Buoy,  corp.     Died  of  wounds  reed,  at  Cold  Harbor. 

Philip  Richards,  corp.  Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Montgomery  S.  Adams,  muse.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 
186o.  Veteran. 

Win.  D.  Hitter,  muse.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1863.  Vet. 

Philip  Bratton,  muse.  Mus.  out  Nov.  16,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Aikey,  Lewis,  private.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Aikey,  Zachariah,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Anderson,  Sol.  K.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Augenstein,  Jacob,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Substitute. 

Allen,  Benj.  P.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  15.  1865. 

Atlce,  Amandus,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  0.  June  1,  1865. 

Arbuckle,  Thos.  J.,  priv.     Cap.     Died,  date  unknown. 

Bower,  Wm.  D.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Betzer,  John,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Babcock,  Jos.,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out.     Veteran. 

Bentley,  Frank. ,  priv.     Dis.  Feb.  25, 1865,  by  sen.  of  G.  C.  M. 

Benfer,  Danl.,  priv.     Dis.  Jan.  12,  for  disability. 

Buss,  George,  priv.  Wounded  at  Kuoxville  and  then  cap. 
Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Baldwin,  Absalom,  priv.  Cap.  Died  Sep.  24,  1864,  at 
Andersonville. 

Bonnell,  Wayne,  priv.     Des.  June  16,  1865. 

Bower,  Jacob,  priv.     Des.  July  11,  1865.    Sub. 

Burns,  Abraham,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Bostain,  Geo.  W.,  priv.     Dis.  on  surg.  cer. 

Bower,  Martin,  priv.    Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Crossgrove,  Sainl.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Veteran. 

Cox,  John  T.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Covey,  Matthew,  B.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865. 

Crossgrove,  Lemuel  J.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr. 
of  term. 

Cliner,  Jacob,  priv.     Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.  date  unknown. 

Duck,  Franklin  F.,  priv.  Cap.  Aug.  21,  1864,  at  Weldon  R. 
R.  Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Deibler,  Alex.,  priv.  Cap.  at  North  Anna  May  27,  1864. 
Absent  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Dull,  Geo.  N.,  priv.  Died  Sep.  19,  1864,  at  Alexandria, 
grave  2,688. 

Depo,  Thos.  T.,  priv.     Trans,  to  V.  R.  C.  1863. 

Daly,  Henry  A.,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  A.  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Eickner,  John,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Draf. 


684     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIKST   EEGIMENT 

Ecklcy,  John.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  11,  1865.    Draf. 
Edwards,  Henry,  priv.     Des.  June  1,  1805.     Draf. 
Fangford,  John,  priv.     Wounded  May  6,   1864,  at  Wilder 
ness,  Va.     Absent  at  muster-out  of  co. 

Fritz,  Daniel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Frutchey,  Fred.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Fritz,  John,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  11,  1865. 
Frey,  Alpheus,  priv.     Deserted  May  5,  1864.     Veteran. 
Foley,  John  F.,  priv.     Deserted  May  23,  1865.     Sub. 
Fisher,  George,  priv.     Not  on  master-out  roll. 
Fisher,  Thos.  T.,  priv.     Died  January  12,  1862,  at  Annapo 
lis,  Md. 

Fortner,  Jacob,  priv.     Wounded  September  17,  1862,  at  An- 
tietam.     Dis.  on  account  of  wounds  1862. 

Gangeer,  Henry,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  '65.    Vet. 
Grube,  Frank  T.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  12,  1865. 
Garrett,  James  S.,  priv.    Captured.     Died  at  Andersoiiville, 
Ga.,  August  18,  1864;  grave,  6,140. 

Geddes,  John,  priv.     Deserted  August,  1862. 
Gallagher,  James  C.,  priv.     Miss,  in  action  at  2d  Bull  Run. 
Gnner,  Win.,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  1862. 
Herzog,  Daniel,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Henry,  Isaiah,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
lloutz,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Ilouselmaii,  Peter,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Ilemperly,  Jno.  F.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
HoU'mau,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Huntzberger,  Jesse,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Dratted. 

Ilahn,  Nathan  M.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  11,  1865. 
Harris,  John,  priv.     Wounded  June  17,  1864,  at  Petersburg, 
Va.  ;  died  of  wound  .Tune  30,  1864. 

Hoover,  Daniel,  priv.     Wounded  June  17,  1864,  at  Peters 
burg,  Va.  ;  died  of  wounds        27,  1864. 

Hoover,  Chas.,  priv.    Died  at  New  York  city  Nov.  12,  1864. 
Holden,  Geo.  V.,  priv.     Dis.  August,  1863. 
Hold,  Edward,  priv.     Trans,  to  Vet.  Reserve  Corps;  date 
unknown. 

Hickcrnal,  John,  priv.     Trans,  to  U.  S.  army  Oct.  27,  1862. 
Hummel,  Christian,  priv.  Died  June,  1862,  atNewbern,  N.C. 
Krites,  Win.  K.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Kautfman,  Xavier,  priv.   Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Sub. 
Kramer,  Jacob,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Kinney,  Chas.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  13,  1865. 
Kinney,   Win.    M.,  priv.      Died  October  27,   1864,   at  City 
Point,  Va. 

Kuntz,  Alfred,  priv.     Captured.     Died  November  5,  1864, 
at  Salisbury. 

Kemmel,  John,  priv.     Trans,   to  Vet.   Reserve  Corps,  date 
unknown. 

Kaiser,  Chas.,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability,  date  unknown. 
Ludwig,  James,  priv.     Captured  May  12,  1864,  at  Spottsyl- 
vania.     Absent  at  muster-out  of  co. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEEES.      685 

Logan,  Wm.  R.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  '65.    Yet. 

Lorah,  Henry,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  10,  1865.     Draft. 

Marr,  James,  priv.     Absent  sick  at  mus.  out  of  co. 

Matley,  Howard,  priv.  Absent  sick  at  muster  out  of  co.  Dft. 

Morgan,  James  E.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Meylert,  Win.  S.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  23,  1865. 

Mann,  Philip  J.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  2,  1865. 

Mills,  David,  priv.  Mus.  out  November  12,  1864.  Expira 
tion  of  term. 

Miller,  Nicholas,  priv.     Deserted  April  5,  1865.     Sub. 

Morse,  Chas.,  priv.     Deserted  April  5,  1865.     Sub. 

Moore,  Joseph  G.,  priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Reserve  Corps  June 
10,  1865. 

McMullin,  H.  L.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.     Draft. 

McBride,  Anthony,  priv.     Deserted  April  5,  1865.     Sub. 

McBride,  Paul,  priv.  Wounded  September  17,  1862,  at  An- 
tietam.  Dis.  December,  1862,  on  account  of  wounds. 

Neifert,  Jacob,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Drft. 

Ocker,  David  G.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

O'Neil,  Joseph,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  '65.     Sub. 

Proof,  Alonzo,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Paege,  Raleigh,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Sub. 

Poeth,  Joseph  M.,  priv.     Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  11,  1865. 

Poust,  William,  priv.  Wounded  August  19,  1864,  at  Yellow 
Tavern;  died  September  10,  1864,  from  wounds. 

Patterson,  Ed.  II.,  priv.  Killed  December  1,  1863,  at  the 
siege  of  Knoxville,  while  doing  duty  as  a  houseburner. 

Rossman,  David,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Reese,  John  Lee,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  Juty  27,  1865. 

Rank,  Benj.,  priv.    Wounded  June  3,  1864,  at  Cold  Harbor. 

Rider,  Benj.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Reish,  Solomon,  priv.  Captured  Aug.  21,  1864,  at  Weldon 
Railroad.  Absent  at  muster-out. 

Robb,  Henry,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.     Sub. 

Rosenberger,  Ed.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Riter,  Geo.  S.,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.     Draft. 

Reifsnyder,  John,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Ritter,  John,  priv.     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Drafted. 

Robinson,  And.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Sub. 

Royer,  Saml.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Richards,  Philip,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  12, 1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Reifsnyder,  Wm.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of 
term. 

Rank,  Saml.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  3,  1865. 

Reichley,  David,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  17,  1865. 

Roush,  Benj.  F.,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  Feb.  10,  1865. 

Rank,  John,  priv.  Died  May  14,  1864,  of  wounds  received 
at  Spottsylvania  C.  H.  May  12,  1864. 

Richards,  Ed.  H.,  priv.  Wounded  Aug.  19,  1864,  at  Yellow 
Tavern.  Died  of  wounds  Sept.  10,  1864. 

Ryan,  Jas.,  priv.    Deserted  April  5,  1865. 


686      HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 

Rundio,  Wm.  T.,  priv.    Dis.  for  disability  Sept.,  18G2. 

Kichards,  Erwin,  priv.  Wounded  Sept.  17,  18G2,  at  Antie- 
tam.  Dis.  on  account  of  wounds  Jan.,  1803. 

Reedy,  Francis,  priv.    Des.  Feb.,  1864. 

Schilling,  Alfred,  priv.  Wounded  at  Wilderness  May  G,  18G4. 
Absent  at  mus.  out. 

Stees,  David  C.,  priv,     Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  18G5. 

Stutzman,  Wm.  M.,  priv.  Wounded  in  action  July  1C,  18G4. 
Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  18G5. 

Schlegel,  Peter,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  18G5.    Draf. 

Shaw,  Robt.  B.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  18G5.    Sub. 

Snyder,  John,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.    Draft. 

Steinberger,  Edmund,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Springer,  Jacob  P.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Scheuck,  Paul  F.,  priv.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Souder,  Eph.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Shires,  Mich.,  priv.     Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Stidiuger,  Saml.  G.,  priv.  Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of 
term. 

Sarba,  Jos.,  priv.    Mus.  out  Nov.  12,  1864,  expr.  of  term. 

Search,  Wm.,  priv.     Dis.  by  sen.  of  G-.  C.  M.  Feb.  15,  1865. 

Summers,  Cline,  priv.     Dis.  by  sen.  of  G.  C.  M.  Feb.  15,  1865. 

Swagers,  Thos.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.    Drafted. 

Shafer,  Thos.  C.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  July  15,  1865. 

Southard,  Abram  C.,  priv.  Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  26,  1865. 
Drafted. 

Showers,  Henry  C.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June 27,  1865. 

Shafer,  Geo.  S.,  priv.  Died  March  18, 1864,  at  Harrisburg,  Pa. 

Schwep,  Fred.,  priv.  Killed  at  Wilderness,  May  6, 18G4.  Vet. 

Scheeks,  Danl.,  priv.  Died  July,  1864,  of  wounds  received 
at  Petersburg,  Va. 

Scheeks,  Christian,  priv.  Killed  at  Yellow  Tavern,  Aug. 
19,  1864. 

Singer,  Lewis,  priv.  Trans,  to  Vet.  Res.  Corps,  date  unknown. 

Trutt,  Wm.  M.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Taylor,  Jos.  C.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27, 1865.  Draft. 

Twigg,  John  T.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  June  1,  1865.    Drafted. 

Turner,  Lyman  B.,  priv.    Not  on  mus. -out  roll. 

Vogel,  Wm.  H.,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.  Vet. 

Vancuran,  Nathaniel,  priv.  Wounded  June  16, 1864.  Absent 
at  muster-out. 

Winegarden,  John,  priv.  Vet,  Wounded  at  June  6,  1864. 
Absent  at  muster-out. 

Wilson,  Wm.,  priv.    Sub.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Walker,  Chas.,  priv.    Draft.  Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

Wagner,  Aug.,  priv.    Draft.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865. 

"W'rtz,  Robt.,  priv.    Dis.  by  G.  O.  May  22,  1865. 

Willet,  Chas.  W.,  priv.    Killed  at  Spottsylvania  May  12,  1864. 

Widdell,  John,  priv.  Wounded  June  3, 18(54,  at  Cold  Harbor. 

Watts,  John,  priv.    Not  on  mus. -out  roll. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  687 

Yates,  Win.,  priv.  Wounded  at  Antietam  Sept.  17,  1862. 
Absent  at  muster-out. 

Yoder,  Seneca,  priv.    Mus.  out  with  co.  July  27,  1865.    Draft. 

Yohl,  Alfred,  priv.  Captured.  Died  at  Salisbury,  N.  C.,  Oct. 
26,  1864. 

Yearick,  Tobias,  priv.     Dis.  for  disability  Oct.,  1863. 

Total  names  on  the  rolls,  197.* 


A  ROLL    OF  NAMES   THAT   ARE   UNASSIGNED. 

Agen,  John,  priv.  Enlisted  March  24,  1865.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  rolls. 

Balliet,  John  W.,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  11,  1864.  3  years. 
Not  on  muster-out  rolls. 

Bate,  Joel,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  22,  1864.  3  years.  Not  on 
muster-out  rolls. 

Barthell,  Lewis,  priv.  Enlisted  March  2,  1865.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Coughan,  Patrick,  priv.  Enlisted  Sept.  19,  1864.  1  year. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 

Clevenstine,  John,  priv.  Enlisted  Aug.  26,  1864.  1  year. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 

Corey,  Matthew  B.,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  25,  1864.  3  years. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 

Cole,  Christopher  C.,  priv.  Enlisted  July  29, 1864.  3  years. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 

Collins,  John  C.,  priv.  Enlisted  Jan.  23, 1864.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Fisher,  Samuel,  priv.  Enlisted  June  4,  1864.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Fleishhaner,  Isaac,  priv.  Enlisted  Jan.  27,  1865.  1  year. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 

Garrett,  James,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  26,  1864.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

*  Summary  of  casualties.— Killed— Com.  officers,  1 ;  non-com,  offi 
cers,  5;  privates,  5.  Died  of  wounds — Non-com,  officers,  3;  privates,  6. 
Died  of  disease — Privates,  6.  Died  in  rebel  prisons — Non-com,  officers, 
1;  privates,  7.  Wounded — Com.  officers,  3;  non-com,  officers,  4; 
privates,  18.  Captured — Non-com,  officers,  1 ;  privates,  10.  Trans 
ferred—Non-com,  officers,  1  ;  privates,  10.  Discharged— Com.  of 
ficers,  2 ;  non-com,  officers,  3  ;  privates,  44.  Resigned — Com.  of 
ficers,  5.  Deserted — Privates,  11.  Absent  at  muster-out — Enlisted 
men,  9. 

Recapitulation. — Killed,  11 ;  died  of  wounds,  9 ;  died  of  disease,  6  ; 
died  in  rebel  prisons,  8  ;  wounded,  25  ;  captured,  11 ;  transferred,  11 ; 
discharged,  49  ;  resigned,  5 ;  deserted,  11 ;  absent  at  muster-out,  9. 
Grand  total  casualties,  155. 

With  the  exception  of  the  wounded,  this  list  is  reliable,  as  the 
rolls  indicate  a  desire  to  record  everything  (wounded  excepted)  per 
taining  to  a  casualty  incident  to  a  military  organization. 

Oompany  K  has  done  a  full  share  in  the  battles  in  which  the  51st 
participated,  as  its  list  indicates. 


088     HISTOEY    OF    THE   FIFTY- FIEST   REGIMENT 

Hunt,  Daniel,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  19,  1864.  3  years.  De 
serted,  date  unknown. 

Hercher,  Charles  F.,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  22,  1804.  3  years. 
Not  on  muster- out  roll. 

Hummel,  James,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  22, 1864.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Kime,  George,  priy.  Enlisted  Feb.  22,  1864.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Keens,  Alfred,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  2,  1864.  2  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Learcli,  Wm.,  priv.  Enlisted  Jan.  29,  1864.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Lubold,  Castor,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  19, 18C4.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Ludwick,  Jared  R,  priv.  Enlisted  Jan.  30,  1865.  3  years. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 

Labor,  Alonzo,  priv.  Enlisted  Jan.  25,  1865.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Nixon,  John  T.,  priv.  Enlisted  Jan.  25, 1865.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Nolan,  James,  priv.  Enlisted  Mar.  24,  1865.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Perry,  Geo.  W.,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  25, 1864.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Simmons,  William,  priv.  Enlisted  April  1,  1865.  1  year. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 

Troy,  John,  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  25,  1864.  3  years.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Thompson,  John,  priv.  Enlisted  April  4,  1865.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

Valquette,  Leon,  priv.  Enlisted  July  16,  1864.  1  year.  Not 
on  muster-out  roll. 

VanGeezer,  Geo.  RM  priv.  Enlisted  Feb.  16,  1864.  3  years. 
Not  on  muster-out  roll. 


Statement  of  51st  Regiment  P.  V.  V. 

Field  and  staff,  com.  and  non-com.,  33;  Co.  A,  227;  B,  174;  C, 
195  ;  D,  219  ;  E,  182  ;  F,  210 ;  G,  230  ;  H,  236  ;  I,  189  ;  K,  197.  To 
tal  names  on  the  roll  of  the  51st,  2,092. 

Casualties  in  the  field  and  staff.  Killed,  2  ;  killed  by  accident,  2  ; 
wounded,  5  ;  captured,  1 ;  transferred,  6  ;  discharged,  7  ;  resigned,  5. 
Total,  28. 

Recapitulation  (final).  Killed,  field  and  staff,  2;  ro.  A,  13;  B, 
7  ;  C,  14  ;  D,  12  ;  E,  7  ;  F,  11  ;  G,  12  ;  H,  1  6  ;  I,  11  ;  K,  11.  Total,  116. 

Died  of  wounds.  Field  and  staff,  none.  Co.  A,  17;  B,  3  ;  C,  9 ; 
D,  S  ;  E,  4  ;  F,  8  ;  G,  8  ;  H,  2  ;  I,  5  ;  K,  9.  Total,  73. 

Died  of  disease.  Field  and  staff,  none.  Co.  A,  12  ;  B,  2  ;  C,  10  ; 
D,  11 ;  E,  4 ,  F,  6  ;  G,  12  ;  II,  8  ;  I,  9  ;  K,  6.  Tota',  80. 

Died  in  captivity.  Field  and  staff,  none.  Co.  A,  5 ;  B,  2 ;  C,  4  ; 
D,  2  ;  E,  1  ;  F,  1  ;  G,  2  ,  H,  5  ;  I,  3  ;  K,  8.  Total,  33. 

Wounded.  Field  and  staff,  5.  Co.  A,  67  ;  B,  6;  C,  36  ;  D,  42  ;  E, 
11 ;  F,  29  ;  G,  13  ;  H,  25  ;  I,  32 ;  K,  25.  Total,  291. 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  689 

Captured.  Field  and  staff,  1.  Co.  A,  11 ;  B,  7  ;  C,  9  ;  D,  7  ;  E,  3  . 
F,  2  ;  G,  3  ;  H,  17 ;  I,  5  ;  K,  11.  Total,  70. 

Discharged.  Field  and  staff,  7.  Co.  A,  80  ;  B,  51  ;  C,  39 ;  D,  71 : 
E,  57  ;  F,  53  ;  G,  74  ;  II,  86  ;  I,  57  ;  K,  49.  Total,  633. 

Transferred.  Field  and  staff,  6.  Co.  A,  18  ;  B,  7  ;  C,  8  ;  D,  1  4  ; 
E,  31  ;  F,  39  ;  G,  40  ;  H,  31  ;  I,  8  ;  K,  11.  Total,  303. 

Resigned.  Field  and  staff,  5.  Co.  A,  1  ;  C,  1  ;  D,  3  ;  F,  1  ;  G,  2  ; 
H,  1  ;  I,  1 ;  K,  5.  Total,  19. 

Killed  by  accident.  Field  and  staff,  3.  Co.  A,  1 ;  D,  3  ;  F,  2  ;  G, 
2  ;  I,  3.  total,  12. 

Deserted.  Co.  A,  25 ;  B,  13  ;  C,  11 ;  D,  19  ;  E,  7  ;  F,  11 ;  G,  11  ; 
II,  5;  I,  11;  K,  11.  Total,  123. 

Missing.     Co.  C,  2  ;  D,  2.     Total,  4. 

Absent  at  muster-out.  In  arrest. — Co.  A,  3  ;  C,  4  ;  F,  1 ;  IT,  2  ;  I, 
2.— 13.  Sick.— Co.  A,  3  ;  B,  4  ;  C,  7  ;  D,  6  ;  E,  5  ;  G,  5 ;  H,  3  ;  I,  1  ; 
K,  9.—  43.  Total,  55. 

Summary.  Killed,  116  ;  died  of  wounds,  73;  died  of  disease,  80  ; 
died  in  captivity,  33;  died  by  accident,  13.  Total  deceased,  314. 
Wounded,  391 ;  captured,  76;  discharged,  633  ;  transfers,  203  ;  resig 
nations,  19  ;  desertions,  133  ;  missing,  4  ;  absent,  sick  and  in  arrest, 
55.  Casualties  total,  1,394. 

This  list  of  casualties  in  recapitulation  of  the  51st 
Regiment  P.  Y.  V.,  when  sifted,  will  be  found  pretty 
nearly  correct  as  to  the  total  deaths  by  killing  and 
other  causes.  In  the  transfers,  one-third  was  made 
within  the  regiment,  the  remainder  outside.  The 
wounded  are  reported  as  often  as  injured,  those  who 
were  struck  three  times  are  registered  as  often ;  this 
is  to  be  borne  in  mind,  or  else  an  incorrect  impres 
sion  may  be  made  that  the  idea  is  to  swell  the  casu 
alties  to  outdo  other  organizations,  which  has  not 
been  the  case.  Jealousy  was  a  stranger  amongst  the 
officers  and  men  of  the  51st,  and  if  any  other  regi 
ment  has  a  brighter  escutcheon  than  the  former,  it 
or  they  have  the  best  wishes  of  every  officer  and 
man  of  the  51st,  to  enjoy  it,  and  none  will  uphold 
them  in  it  more  than  their  comrades  of  the  olst 
P.  V.  Y.,  as  they  all  know  that  it  took  a  deal  of 
patient  endurance  to  gain  what  little  glory  it  pos 
sesses,  and  also  that  if  other  regiments  do  outstrip 
it,  their  hard  knocks,  like  our  own,  were  seldom  re 
ceived  in.  a  spirit  of  envy. 

30* 


690     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Below  are  the  battles  in  which  the  51st  P.  V.  Y. 
participated,  from  its  first  entrance  on  the  field  to 
its  retirement  from  camp-life  : 

Roanoke  Island,  Feb.  7  and  8,  1862. 
Newborn,  N.  C.,  March  13  and  14,  1862. 
Camden,  N.  C.,  April  19,  1862. 
Bull  Run,  Va.,  August  29  and  30,  1862. 
Chantilly,  Va.,  September  1,  1862. 
South  Mountain,  September  14,  1862. 
Antietam,  September  17  and  18,  1862. 
Fredericksburg,  December  12,  13,  and  14,  1862. 
Vicksburg,  Miss.,  June  16  to  July  4,  1863. 
Jackson/Miss.,  July  8  to  July  18,  1863. 
Campbell's  Station,  Tenn.,  November  16,  1863. 
Knoxville,  Tenn.,  November  17  to  Dec.  5,  1863. 
Wilderness,  Va.,  May  6,  1864. 
Spottsylvania,  Va.,  May  12  to  14,  1864. 
Cold  Harbor,  Va.,  May  31  to  June  8,  1864. 
Petersburg,  Va.,  June  16  to  August  18,  1864. 
Yellow  Tavern,  Va.,  August  19,  1864. 
Weldon  Railroad,  Va.,  August  21,  1864. 
Hatcher's  Run,  Va.,  October  27,  28,  and  29, 1864. 
Petersburg,  November  29,  1864,  to  April  2,  1865. 

Skirmishes.—  Kelly's  Ford,  1862;  Rappahannock,  1862; 
Warrenton,  1862;  Sulphur  Springs,  Va.,  Nov.  16,  1862;  Sul 
phur  Springs,  Aug.  24,  1862;  Upperville,  Va.,  1862;  Fairfax 
C.  II.,  1862;  Big  Black,  Miss.,  July  6,  1863  ;  Jackson,  Miss., 
July  7,  1863;  London,  Tenn.,  Nov.  15,  1863;  Lenoir,  Tenn., 
Nov.  15,  1863  ;  Rutledge,  Tenn.,  Dec.  16,  1863  ;  Blain's  Cross 
roads,  Dec.  18,  1863  ;  Poplar  Grove  Church,  1864 ;  Bethesda 
Church,  1864;  Peeble's  Farm,  1864;  Ream's  Station,  1864; 
Weldon  Railroad,  1864 ;  besides  a  large  number  of  minor  im 
portance,  of  which  there  are  memoranda. 

Below  is  a  perfectly  reliable  statement  of  the  dis 
tances  traversed  by  the  51st  P.  V.  Y.,  by  marches, 
transports,  and  railway,  as  taken  from  a  Diary. 

From  Bridgeport  to  Harrisburg,  95  miles  ;  From  Harrisburg 
to  Annapolis,  Md.,  123  miles  ;  from  Aquia  Creek  to  Fred 
ericksburg,  15  miles;  from  Bealton  to  Culpepper  C.  II.,  Va., 
15  miles ;  from  Fredericksburg  to  Aquia  Creek,  15  miles ; 
from  Baltimore,  Md.,  to  Paris,  Ky.,  778  miles  ;  from  Nicholas- 
ville,  Ky.,  to  Cairo,  111.,  508  miles;  from  Cairo,  111.,  to  Nicho- 
lasville,  Ky.,  508  miles;  from  Knoxville  to  Loudon,  Tenn.,  28 
miles;  from  Nicholasville,  Ky.,  to  Bridgeport,  Pa.,  789  miles; 
from  Bridgeport,  Pa.,  to  Ilarrisburg,  Pa.,  95  miles;  from 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  691 

Harrisburg  to  Annapolis,  Md.,  123  miles;  from  Washington, 
D.  C.,  to  Harrisburg,  124  miles;  from  Harrisburg  to  Bridge 
port,  95  miles— Total  by  rail,  3,311  miles. 

By  transports  from  Annapolis  to  Fortress  Monroe,  thence  to 
Iloanoke  Island,  to  Newbern,  to  landing  at  Albemarle  Sound, 
back  to  Newbern,  to  Hatteras  Inlet,  back  to  Newbern,  to 
Newport  News,  to  Aqnia  Creek,  to  Baltimore  ;  from  Cairo  to 
Vicksburg  and  back  to  Cairo  ;  from  City  Point  to  Washington, 
from  Washington  to  Alexandria. — Total  5,390  miles. 

By  marches,  total  1,738  miles;  by  water,  total  5,390  miles; 
by  railway,  total  3,311  miles. — Aggregate,  10,439  miles. 


The  above  statement  is  within  the  actual  distance 
the  regiment  travelled.  The  railroad  distance  has 
been  taken  from  the  railroad  surveys.  The  water 
distance  was  obtained  from  the  pilots,  captains,  and 
officers  in  command  of  the  respective  vessels  of 
transportation.  The  marching  was  taken  from  a 
diary  that  had  been  kept  by  the  owner  very  accur 
ately  in  reference  to  marches,  and  can  be  relied  on. 
The  whole  table  is  not  ten  miles  either  above  or  be 
low  the  true  distance ;  if  either  one,  it  is  below. 

A  few  words  to  the  disappointed.  You  should 
not  take  it  unkind  in  not  finding  your  name  among 
the  wounded  on  the  rolls  of  your  company.  Every 
thing  has  been  done  to  obtain  your  name,  when, 
how,  and  where  you  shed  your  blood,  everything 
that  time,  expense,  trouble,  and  vexations,  with  a 
dogged  perseverance,  could  possibly  accomplish, 
and  the  result  is  very  imperfect.  The  aggregate  of 
the  wounded  of  the  51st  would  not  be  one  less  than 
650  cases,  of  which  only  291  of  your  names  stand 
out  in  bold  relief,  while  the  deep  scars  of  your 
jagged  wounds  are  the  silent  evidence  that  you  too 
"  was  there."  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  3rour  wounds 
were  not  recorded  on  your  company's  rolls  instead 
of  the  names  of  those  disgraces  to  their  country's 
flag — the  deserters. 


602     ITISTOEY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   KEGIMENT 


CHAPTER  III. 

Review  of  the  services  of  the  51st— Defence  of  the  regiment 
by  Colonels  Bolton  and  McClellan — Glorious  history  of  the 
Ninth  Army  Corps — Sketches  of  the  field  and  staff' — Villains 
denounced — Stanzas  in  honor  of  the  dead  heroes — Their 
widows  and  orphans — Thanks — List  of  Cemeteries— U.  S. 
price  list. 

IN  ending  it  must  be  said  that  the  51st  Regiment 
of  Pennsylvania  Veteran  Volunteers  has  no  cause 
to  point  to  the  record  of  any  other  military  organi 
zation  and  say  their  escutcheon  is  brighter  than  ours, 
but  it  can,  with  justice  and  infallible  truth,  point 
heavenward  and  say  that  in  the  performance  of  duty 
during  its  whole  military  career  it  stands  second  to 
none  in  the  vast  armies  of  which  it  was  destined  to 
be  a  part  and  parcel.  Its  long  confinement  in  Camp 
Curtin  in  1861,  its  hundreds  of  privations  and  dan 
gers  in  the  "  Burnside  Coast  Expedition,"  both  on 
the  broad  bosom  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  or  on  the 
marshy  soil  of  Roanoke  Island,  or  the  swampy  mud 
of  the  Neuse  river,  all  these  induced  a  fitness  for  the 
subsequent  hardships  it  passed  through  in  the  forty- 
seven  months  of  service  it  rendered  the  Union,  the 
'Constitution  and  the  laws  of  this  unprecedented 
Republic.  It  can  boast  with  pride  of  its  aid  in  de 
stroying  that  ''last  relic  of  barbarism,  the  accursed  of 
all  nations,  the  institution  of  slavery."  It  has  helped 
to  remove  the  libel  on  the  country  of  being  a  Re 
public,  when  it  was  only  a  Republic  in  name  but  not 
in  fact.  It  has  battled  long  and  hard  to  verify  that 
portion  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence;  "That 
all  men  were  created  equal."  It  proved  by  its  deeds 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  693 

that  its  members  were  Union  men  of  tbe  right  stamp, 
no  matter  what  were  their  politics  or  religion.  It  can 
glory  in  being  the  only  regiment  that  was  from  be 
ginning  to  end  with  the  noble  Burnside. 

The  aspersions  of  its  enemies  have  been  met  and 
silenced  by  its  brave  and  noble  commander  Col. 
Bolton,  strengthened  by  the  conscientiousness  that 
it  did  its  whole  duty,  and  by  receiving  the  full  and 
entire  approbation  of  its  influential  class  of  friends. 
The  spleen  and  venom  of  some  who  belonged  to 
the  "bar-room"  oratory,  as  well  as  that  of  another 
class  of  persecutors,  turned  back  on  to  the  venters 
of  the  insidious  poison,  forcing  them  to  blush  and 
hide  their  faces  when  in  the  presence  of  their  braver 
superiors. 

To  those  it  was  a  disgrace  to  wear  the  "livery  of 
the  Lincoln  minions,"  and  thanks  to  those  two 
champions  of  a  "soldier's  dignity,1'  Cols.  Wm.  J. 
Bolton  of  the  5 1st,  and  M.  Kobert  McClellan  of  the 
noble  188th  P.  Yv  who  fought  those  calumniators 
with  similar  weapons  and  drove  them  "into  the  last 
ditch."  Why  the  brave  soldiers  of  the  two  regi 
ments  were  so  assailed  and  villified  by  those  who 
had  not  the  courage  to  join  their  friends  and  with  a 
musket  fight  the  battles  of  the  South,  can  be  an 
swered  by  asking,  why  was  our  Saviour  persecuted 
unto  death?  But  the  time  may  come  when  they 
will  see  the  error  of  their  ways,  and  yet  turn  to  be 
good,  loyal  citizens. 

To  the  thousands  of  friends  of  the  51st,  both  in 
Pennsylvania  and  New  York,  the  thanks  of  the 
entire  regiment  are  due  for  their  frequent  and  many 
favors  received  and  enjoyed.  And  now  at  the  end, 
the  disbandrnent  of  the  9th  corps,  it  is  to  be  regretted 


694     HISTORY.  OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

that  the  oldest  one  in  the  army  should  receive  only 
a  small  share  of  commendation  due  to  its  whole 
meritorious  course.  It  was  slighted  from  its  con 
ception  until  its  disbandment  by  the  entire  edi 
torial  staff,  not  because  it  had  done  nothing,  but 
each  reporter  having  a  peculiar  interest  in  other 
commands,  could  seldom  find  out,  or  see,  or  hear 
anything  the  9th  Corps  had  done,  and  soon  verified 
the  adage  that  "  none  are  so  blind  as  those  who  do 
not  want  to  see." 

A  spirit  of  jealousy,  occasioned  by  the  great 
popularity  of  our  commander  with  his  own  men  and 
those  of  other  corps,  by  the  commanders  of  which 
the  9th  Corps  was  "  peddled  "  out,  caused  them,  with 
one  exception,  to  remain  silent  on  the  merits  or  de 
merits  of  the  nobly  brave  9th.  That  one  exception 
was  an  acknowledgment  from  the  greatest  of  them 
all,  Gen.  Grant.  He  rose  above  the  petty  jealousy 
that  infected  even  officers  of  far  higher  rank  but  of 
far  less  honor,  and  dared  to  acknowledge  in  an  order 
after  the  siege  of  Yicksburg  and  the  capture  of 
Jackson,  that  the  9th  corps  was  composed  of  soldiers. 

No  corps  in  the  whole  army  was  used  like  the  9th. 
It  has  been  in  nearly  every  command  of  the  entire 
army ;  hawked  about  like  a  peddler's  pack,  wher 
ever  a  command  was  in  a  tight  place  the  9th  corps 
was  sure  to  be  sent  to  its  aid.  It  was  under  Burn- 
side,  Foster,  Parke,  Hooker,  Sumner,  Meade,  Grant 
at  Vicksburg,  Sherman  at  Jackson,  McClellan  and 
Pope,  and  a  number  of  others,  hence  the  propriety 
of  its  name  for  travelling  all  over  rebeldom;  but  its 
greatest  reproach  was  the  degradation  of  having  the 
colored  troops  attached  to  it.  In  this  lies  the  secret 
of  the  non -recognition  of  its  services,  for  merit  could 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  695 

not  be  awarded  to  the  white  troops  without  the  col 
ored  troops  being  sharers  of  the  praise.  The  poor 
colored  soldier  should  not  have  had  the  chance  of 
manifesting  his  love  for  his  country  to  the  disgust 
and  horror  of  those  who  "  could  prove  the  war  a 
failure."  The  country  was  nothing  to  him,  he  was 
only  a  "  chattel,"  and  what  right  had  he  to  shoulder 
a  musket  and  spill  his  black  blood  to  give  freedom  to 
millions  of  his  kindred  who  were  living  in  painful 
"luxury"  in  the  cotton,  rice  and  sugar  fields  of  the 
South,  and  in  helping  the  further  perpetuation  of  this 
republic  and  in  bursting  the  cordon  of  the"  White 
Man's  Government?"  His  sphere  was  the  cotton- 
field  with  a  hoe,  not  the  battle-field  with  a  musket ; 
and  by  his  not  being  in  his  proper  compass  the  poor 
do-nothing  9th  Corps  must  not  expect  to  be  admitted 
among  high  circles  who  are  akin  to  the  F.  F.  Vs. 
Ye  black-skinned  warriors,  see  the  damage  you  have 
done  through  your  fighting  shoulder  to  shoulder  with 
the  "  small-fisted  farmers,  the  greasy  mechanics  and 
the  mudsills  of  the  North."  But  let  the  9th  Corps  get 
any  praise  or  not,  it  has  the  satisfaction  of  knowing 
that  it  conscientiously  performed  its  duty  and  aided 
as  much  as  the  best  in  putting  down  the  rebellion 
of  '61-'65. 

The  respect  due  to  the  officers  of  the  regiment 
will  always  be  evinced  whenever  occasion  requires 
and  calls  for  it  from  the  men  lately  under  their  com 
mand.  The  esteem  in  which  its  first  commander, 
Col.  John  Frederick  Hartranft  who  is  now  a  Maj. 
Gen.  by  brevet,  has  been  shown  by  the  suffrage  of 
his  fellow-citizens  in  electing  him  for  a  second  term 
to  the  high  and  responsible  post  of  Auditor-General 
of  Pennsylvania. 


696     IIISTOKY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

Col.  W.  J.  Bolton,  who  is  now  a  Brigadier-General 
"by  brevet,  enjoys  the  respect  and  confidence  of  his 
old  command  and  the  citizens  of  the  town  in  which 
he  resides,  and  he  too,  like  his  predecessor,  has  en 
joyed  the  perplexities  of  a  public  office  by  filling 
the  unpleasant  one  of  high  sheriff  of  his  county, 
(Montgomery.) 

Lieut. -Col.  Wm.  Allebaugh  has  accomplished  a  vic 
tory  which  proves  that  he,  like  his  superior  officers,  is 
held  in  high  esteem  in  the  town  where  he  resides,  by 
his  second  elevation  to  a  public  office,  the  position 
of  burgess  of  the  borough. 

Major  Jos.  K.  Bolton,  an  interested  friend  to  every 
man  in  the  old  51st,  and  of  all  who  know  him,  for 
his  urbanity  of  disposition,  holds  not  only  the 
esteem  of  In's  old  command,  but  the  actual  love  of 
them  all. 

Lieut.  S.  P.  Stephens,  quartermaster,  is  in  feel 
ings  and  respect  the  counterpart  of  his  superior 
officer,  the  major,  and  enjoys  the  confidence  of  the 
authorities  at  Harrisburg,  and  a  good  berth  as  clerk, 
for  which  he  is  well  fitted,  in  the  Auditor-General's 
office. 

Surgeon  Win.  C.  Shurlock  was  a  man  of  no  ordi 
nary  ability,  and  is  deserving  of  a  « light  biography. 
He  was  a  graduate  of  the  class  of  the  9th  of  March, 
1858,  of  the  Jefferson  Medical  College,  Philada.  He 
then  returned  to  Darlington,  Beaver  co.,  Pa.,  and  en 
tered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession,  enjoying  the 
confidence  of  a  large  list  of  patients,  until  the  echo  of 
the  first  gun  that  was  fired  upon  Fort  Sumter  re 
verberated  among  the  hills  of  Beaver  county.  lie 
then  thought  it  was  his  duty  to  offer  his  services  to 
his  country,  He  raised  a  company  of  one  hundred 


OF    PENNSYLVANIA    VOLUNTEERS.  697 

and  ten  men  for  the  "three  months'  service,"  but 
they  were  not  accepted,  as  the  State's  quota  was 
filled.  He  kept  his  company  together,  and  when  the 
time  arrived  he  entered  the  service  as  captain  of 
Co.  D,  of  the  ."Roundheads,  or  100th  P.  V.  He  was 
in  the  taking  of  Port  Royal  and  Beaufort,  S.  C. 
After  which  he  was  stricken  down  with  disease,  with 
no  prospect  of  ever  recovering  his  health  in  that 
climate.  On  the  recommendation  of  the  surgeons  of 
his  regiment,  he  was  induced  to  resign  on  the  16th 
of  December,  1861. 

He  went  home  and  the  change  restored  him  to 
health,  when  he  again  entered  the  service  as  assist 
ant  surgeon  in  the  100th  P.  V.,  his  commission  dated 
July  15th,  1862.  He  served  with  this  regiment 
until  December  28th,  1863,  when  he  was  promoted 
to  surgeon,  and  ordered  to  report  for  duty  to  the 
51st  P.  V.  Y. 

He  was  mustered  as  surgeon  of  the  51st  P.  Y.  Y. 
on  the  9th  of  March,  1864,  and  remained  on  duty  as 
surgeon  till  May  6th,  1864,  when  he  was  detailed  as 
operating  surgeon  at  the  division  hospital  in  the 
field,  where  he  remained  on  duty  till  April  24th, 
1865,  when  he  returned  to  his  regiment,  and  re 
mained  with  it  till  June  6th,  1865,  when  he  was 
mustered  out  of  the  service,  under  orders  of  the  War 
Department  for  the  reduction  of  the  army,  dated  May 
17,  1865. 

Assistant-Surgeon  J.  B.  Rineholt,  whose  close  at 
tention  to  his  patients  caused  them  to  hold  him  in 
high  esteem,  was  kind  and  sympathetic  to  those  who 
were  sick,  but  a  terror  to  those  who  tried  to  "  play 
sick"  in  order  to  shirk  any  duty  for  which  they 
were  detailed.  He  is  living  and  doing  a  fine  busi 
ness  in  Muscatine,  Iowa. 


698      HISTORY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

The  adjutant,  Jacob  H.  Santo,  was  held  in  high 
estimation  by  his  officers  and  the  men.  Being  of 
a  quiet,  unobtrusive  disposition,  he  made  friends 
wherever  he  went.  His  only  fault  was — ''  You  are 
detailed,"  &c.,  which  he  would  tell  you  at  midnight 
as  quick  as  midday.  He  is  doing  a  good  business 
in  Harrisburg,  Pa. 

And  now,  in  conclusion,  one  circumstance  that 
occurred  while  at  Alexandria  tarnishes  the  fair  fame 
and  the  bright  bearing  of  the  51st  P.  Y.  Y.  Its 
atrociousness  deserves  that  it  be  mentioned,  although 
it  only  can  be  wished  that  it  could  be  blotted  out 
of  the  history  of  the  regiment.  The  heinous  crime 
called  for  the  shooting  of  the  villains  who  committed 
the  deed,  but  through  the  instrumentality  of  the 
friends  of  the  accused,  and  the  war  being  over,  only 
one  received  a  slight  punishment.  It  was  the  crime 
of  murder.  A  man  belonging  to  the  36th  New  Jer 
sey  regiment  had  been  paid  off,  and  went  to  the 
city.  After  taking  a  few  drinks  too  many,  and 
while  on  his  way  to  his  camp,  he  stopped  at  the  sut- 
tler's  tent  of  the  51st  P.  Y.  Y.,  and  treated  a  few  who 
were  standing  around.  Some  seeing  that  he  had  a 
large  sum  of  money  about  him,  decided  to  rob  him. 
They  followed  him  up,  until  from  over-intoxication 
the  man  lay  down  under  a  tree  in  the  shade  to  sleep 
off  his  potations,  when  the  desperadoes  with  a  stone 
mashed  in  his  head,  and  robbed  him  of  his  money, 
leaving  him  dead  on  the  roadside.  The  circum 
stances  call  for  a  larger  paragraph  than  what  is  given 
here,  but  enough  has  been  told  to  remind  the  51st 
that  a  spot  of  deep  rooted  rust  rests  on  its  bright 
armor.  Burnish  it  as  you  may,  it  will  stand  there 
as  a  damning  disgrace  on  the  hard-earned  laurels  of 
the  soldier  and  of  the  regiment. 


OF   PENNSYLVANIA   VOLUNTEERS.  699 

We  must  not  forget  our  "heroic  dead  ;  they  sleep 
their  last  sleep,  unmindful  of  the  negligence  of  their 
comrade  survivors.  They  have  received  their  re 
ward  from  God,  and  rest  in  peaceful  tranquillity  on 
the  bloody  fields  of  Boanoke,  Newbern,  Camden, 
etc. ;  and  while  they  lie  awaiting  the  day  when  the 
angel  Gabriel  shall  blow  his  trumpet  to  marshal  the 
hosts  of  the  earth  to  render  an  account  to  the  great 
est  Chieftain  of  all,  let  us  bring  to  mind  their  many 
virtues,  and  indelibly  impress  them  upon  our  hearts 
that  we,  too,  may  receive  the  promotion  promised  us 
by  the  Dying  Soldier  on  Calvary.  But  while  living, 
it  is  our  duty  to  remember  the  great  cause  for  which 
they  died  ;  for  it  might  have  been  your  death  as  well 
as  theirs ;  but  God  had  a  motive  for  sparing  your 
lives  that  will  be  manifested  in  some  epoch  of  future 
time. 

Gather  bright  laurels  to  spread  on  their  graves, 

While  wrapped  in  their  blankets  they  wait  for  the  morn, 

They've  camped  for  the  night  in  the  camp  of  the  braves, 
While  their  deeds  on  the  records  of  State  must  be  borne. 

Breathe  not  a  whisper,  but  what's  uttered  with  love, 
For  their  marches  are  over,  their  battles  are  won, 

But  keep  their  graves  green,  while  they  picket  above, 
And  rear  monuments  high  for  the  work  they  have  done. 

The  cannon's  deep  roar  cannot  call  them  to  battle, 
Nor  the  tap  of  the  drum  command  them  to  march, 

Nor  the  clashing  of  arms  or  the  musketry's  rattle, 
Nor  arid  Mississippi  their  silent  lips  parch. 

They've  enlisted  above  in  Jehovah's  vast  camp, 
Not  armed  or  equipped,  but  their  names  on  his  roll, 

Without  any  enem}''  to  flee  from  their  tramp, 

But  merely  on  guard  there,  at  the  gate  of  the  goal. 

They're  silently  waiting  the  relief  to  come  round, 
That  you  may  relieve  them  from  guarding  their  post, 

The  countersign's  given,  but  not  in  secresy  bound, 
For  all  can  recruit  for  Jehovah's  great  host. 

Then  breathe  not  a  whisper  that's  not  uttered  with  love, 
For  their  marches  are  over,  their  battles  are  won, 

But  keep  their  graves  green,  while  they  picket  above, 
And  rear  monuments  high,  for  the  work  they  have  done. 


700     HISTORY   OF   THE   FIFTY-FIRST   REGIMENT 

As  it  is  not  in  the  power  of  any  mortal  to  change 
the  condition  of  the  dead,  yet  we  can  hope  that  they 
are  happier  far  than  we  are  here,  and  believing  that 
he  who  gives  his  life  in  honorable  warfare  for  the 
salvation  of  his  country  finds  a  sure  passport  to  his 
Saviour's  breast,  we  will  drop  a  tear  in  memory  of 
our  departed  heroes,  and  leave  them  "at rest"  in  the 
great  camp  above  while  we  "do  duty"  on  God's  foot 
stool  here  below. 

But  what  of  the  widows  and  orphans  of  our  noble 
departed  ?  If  we  cannot  change  the  condition  of  the 
dead,  we  can  of  the  living.  'Tis  said  that  republics 
are  ungrateful.  Time  will  tell  how  true  that  "saying  " 
is.  but  while  we  are  waiting  for  that  to  happen,  can 
we  see  our  legless,  armless  and  otherwise  crippled 
heroes  at  the  street  corners  grinding  out  music  from 
an  organ  by  the  meagre  cent's-worth  to  the  passers- 
by,  when  situations  could  be  offered  them  whereby 
they  could  earn  a  comfortable  living  and  at  the  same 
time  give  a  fair  day's  work  for  a  fair  day's  wages  ? 
Some  say,  "they  can't  be  trusted  in  responsible 
situations."  Out  with  the  idea  !  Can't  be  trusted  ? 
No  man  living  can  offer  a  situation  half  as  respon 
sible  as  the  one  in  which  the  soldier  lost  his  limb. 
The  nation's  life  was  reposed  in  his  hands,  did  he  be 
tray  the  trust?  look  at  his  armless  sleeve,  his  legless 
pants,  and  see  how  too  faithful  he  cherished  his  trust, 
and  yet  he  is  not  to  be  trusted !  Why,  forsooth  ? 
Because  some  displayed  their  vicious  traits  ?  But 
do  not  such  things  happen  every  day  in  civil  life? 
Let  him  be  cared  for,  let  his  half-starved  family  re 
ceive  something  to  show  that  his  efforts  to  serve  and 
save  his  country  are  appreciated ;  talk  is  cheap,  but 
a  man's  arm  or  leg  is  not  so  lightly  bought ;  who  of 
you  would  sell  a  leg  or  an  arm  for  the  paltry  sum 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS.      701 

of  eight  dollars  a  month  during  the  remainder  of 
your  days  ?  No,  not  one  ;  it  is  not  republics  that  are 
ungrateful,  but  it  is  those  who  are  counted  in  the 
census  of  that  republic  that  are.  Are  not  thousands 
crying  out  against  the  enormous  taxation  which 
partly  go  to  give  the  poor  cripple  his  scanty  eight 
dollars  a  month  ?  even  that  is  begrudged  him,  and 
you  would  stop  it  if  you  could.  Eepublics  ungrate 
ful?  No!  it  is  you  who  are  ungrateful,  not  the  re 
public  ! 

Let  us  smooth  their  path  with  gentle  hands, 
As  down  life's  current  they'll  be  toss'd, 

Remove  the  pebbles  in  the  sands, 

And  warm  the  heart  that's  chilled  by  frost. 

Let  the  helpless  widow  of  our  brave  soldiers  re 
ceive  substantial  sympathy  to  make  the  dreary  home 
one  of  comfort  for  her  fatherless  babes,  and  keep  her 
from  working  half  the  night  and  all  the  day  for  a 
pittance  of  twenty  or  twenty-five  cents  from  some 
tyrant  task-master  who  is  not  willing  to  see  her  live. 
While  everything  ranges  high  in  price  it  is  not 
much  that  some  can  offer  who  are  dependent  on  their 
daily  labor,  but  there  are  others  that  can;  and  to 
those  we  commit  the  widows,  the  orphans,  and  the 
maimed  and  crippled  soldiers,  for  care. 

In  closing  allow  me  to  return  my  sincere  thanks 
to  those  brave  soldier  citizens,  Major  D.  R.  Larned, 
General  Burnside's  private  Secretary ;  General  Wm. 
J.  and  Major  Joseph  K.  Bolton,  Lieut.  Samuel  P. 
Stephens,  Hon.  Samuel  P.  Bates,  State  Historian  ; 
Mr.  Kelly,  Chief  Clerk  in  the  Adjutant  General's 
Office,  and  a  host  of  others,  for  their  especial  acts  of 
kindness  in  furnishing,  important  information  and 
aid  to  the  author  of  this  work,  and  to  all  let  me 
say,  "may  your  prosperity  and  shadows  never  be 
less." 


702     HISTOKY   OF   THE    FIFTY-FIRST    REGIMENT 


List  of  the  National  Cemeteries  and  the  most  important  Soldiers1 
burial  places  in  the  United  States,  as  furnished  by  the  Quarter 
master-General  U.  S.  A. 


1.  Alexandria,  Virginia. 

2.  Alexandria,  Louisiana. 

3.  Andersonville,  Georgia. 

4.  Annapolis,  Maryland. 

5.  Antietam,  Maryland. 
C.  Arlington,   Virginia. 

7.  Barrancas,  Florida. 

8.  Baton  Rouge,  Louisiana. 

9.  Beverly,  New  Jersey. 

10.  Beaufort,  South  Carolina. 

11.  Bristol,  Pennsylvania. 

12.  Brownsville,  Texas. 

13.  Camp  Butler,  Illinois. 

14.  Camp  Dennison,  Ohio. 

15.  Camp  Nelson,  Kentucky. 

16.  Carlisle,  Pennsylvania. 

17.  Chattanooga,  Tennessee. 

18.  Chester,  Pennsylvania. 

19.  Chicago,  Illinois. 

20.  City  Point,  Virginia. 

21.  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

22.  Cold  Harbor,  Virginia. 

23.  C ul pepper  C.H.,  do 

24.  Columbus,  Ohio. 

25.  Corinth,  Mississippi. 

26.  Cypress  Hills,  New  York. 

27.  Danville,  Kentucky. \ 

28.  Danville,    Virginia. 

29.  Davenport,  7o?0a. 

30.  Easton,  Pennsylvania. 

31.  Evansville,  Indiana. 

32.  Fayetteville,  Arkansas. 

33.  Florence,  Sot^A   Carolina. 

34.  Fort  Don  nelson,  Tennessee. 

35.  Fort  Harrison,  Virginia. 

36.  Fort  Leavenworth,  Kansas 

37.  Fort  St.  Philip,  Louisiana. 

38.  Fort  Scott,  Kansas. 

39.  Fort  Smith,  Arkansas. 

40.  Fredericksburg,  Virginia. 

41.  Gallipolis,  OM?. 

42.  Gettysburg,  Pennsylvania. 

43.  Glendale,  Virginia. 

44.  Galveston,  Texas. 


45.  Graf  ton,  TF<w2  Virginia. 

46.  Hampton,   Virginia. 

47.  Harrisburg,   Pennsylvania. 

48.  Indianapolis,  Indiana. 

49.  Jefferson  City,  Missouri. 

50.  Jefferson  Barracks,  JLfo. 

51.  Keokuk,  Iowa. 

52.  Knoxville,  Tennessee. 

53.  Lebanon,  Kentucky. 

54.  Lexington,  Kentucky. 

55.  Little  Rock,  Arkansas. 

56.  Logan's  Cross-roads,  -STy. 

57.  London  Park,  Maryland. 

58.  Louisville,  Kentucky. 

59.  Marietta,  Georgia. 
00.  Memphis,  Tennessee. 

61.  Mound  City,  Illinois. 

62.  Mobile,  Alabama. 

63.  Murfreesboro,  Tennessee. 

64.  Nashville,  Tennessee. 

65.  Natchez,  Mississippi. 

66.  New  Albany,  Indiana. 

67.  Newbern,  jVor^/i  Carolina. 

68.  New  Orleans,  Louisiana. 
69..  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania 

70.  Pittsburg,  Pennsylvania. 

71.  Pittsburg  Landing,  I^m. 

72.  Poplar  Grove,  Virginia. 

73.  Port  Hudson,  Louisiana. 

74.  Quincy,  Illinois. 

75.  Raleigh,  North  Carolina. 

76.  Richmond,  Virginia. 

77.  Salisbury,  North  Carolina. 

78.  San  Antonia,  Tfcaas. 

79.  Seven  Pines,  Virginia. 

80.  Springfield,  Missouri. 

81.  Staunton,  Virginia. 

82.  Vicksburg,  Mississippi. 

83.  Wilmington,  ^V.  Carolina. 

84.  Wilmington,  Delaware. 

85.  Winchester,   Virginia. 

86.  Washington,  Z).  Columbia. 

87.  York,  Pennsylvania. 

88.  Yorktown,  Virginia. 


OF  PENNSYLVANIA  VOLUNTEERS. 


703 


Recapitulation. — Alabama,  1  ;  Arkansas,  3  ;  Florida,  1  ; 
Georgia,  2  ;  Indiana,  3  ;  Iowa,  2  ;  Illinois,  4  ;  District  of  Col 
umbia,  1 ;  Kansas,  2  ;  Delaware,  1  ;  Louisiana,  5  ;  Mississippi, 
3,  Missouri,  3  :  Maryland,  3  ;  New  York,  1  ;  New  Jersey,  1  ; 
North  Carolina,  4  ;  Ohio,  4  ;  Pennsylvania,  9  ;  Kentucky,  6  : 
South  Carolina,  2  ;  Tennessee,  7  ;  Texas,  3  ;  Virginia,  16  ; 
West  Virginia,  1.— Total  88. 


The  following  is  the  price  list  of  United  States  clothing,  camp  and 
garrison  equipage  as  charged  the  51st  Regt.  P.  V.  V.  for  the 
year  1865. 


Axes  

$1  65 
20 
480 
400 
270 
225 
1  00 
25 
65 
1  00 
12  50 
12  00 
12 
225 
65 

95 
81 

Hatchet  helves  

$        7 
4  75 
2  32 
2  25 
160 
1  75 
48 
700 
2  65 
440 
3  10 

9  80 
106  28 
107  31 
239  95 
39  95 
45 

Axe   Helves 

Pants 

Blouses    lined 

Shirts    flannel 

do        unlinod          .. 

do      knit       ..  .. 

Bootees  sewed 

Drawers,  flannel  

do      DGftred 

do        knit    

Socks 

Cap  cover    

Blankets,  woollen  
do        painted  
do         rubber 

Canteens  

C'inip  kettles 

Coats,  privates  uniform 
Coats   over 

Knapsack  and  straps.. 
Tents,     D'Abri     com 
plete  

Coat,      do    straps  
Hats    uniform     .        ... 

Tents,  wall  

Haversacks,  unpainted 
do          enamelled 
and  painted  

do      Sibley  

do     hospital 

do     A  or  wedge  

Mess  pans.  .. 

Hatchets..., 

FINIS. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

RENEWALS  ONLY— TEL.  NO.  642-3405 
This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


/U?i  >  a  Jo  &.  Shctf-AA 

f. 

AUG  14  1970 

t>ue  end  of  FAIL  Qu 
•-'bfettteteeaii  «fa 

:^«r^7i  sa 

REC'D  M    OC 

T2471-^|W  ^54 

DEC  2  6  1973 

1       Drwi>^ 

BEC-DCO   DEC 

?  8  73  -2  PM 

FEB  2  6  1980 

REC.CIR.  FEB2  3  TO 

•~y                     5£ 

1   ^    £ 

3        CT)          CL 

>-      22 
cc                b 

«=c       c-~*       -  ' 

£    '^    £ 

=3       -.       ^ 

re      -*- 

l±!      ^      > 
rz:        ^      ^ 

n> 

LD2lA-60m-3,'70 
(N5382slO)476-A-32 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


YC  51219 


M184013 


pf 

THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


